


Lovely Beginnings

by alley_kat



Series: The Love Story of Ruby Rose and Weiss Schnee [1]
Category: RWBY
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/F, F/M, Fluff, Light Angst, Minor appearances from RWBY characters, Neighbours, Romance, Slice of Life, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-19
Updated: 2021-03-02
Packaged: 2021-03-17 14:01:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 35
Words: 80,978
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28850262
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/alley_kat/pseuds/alley_kat
Summary: At the last day of the year, a woman with hair as white as snow moves into the house behind from Ruby Rose. As time goes by, the relationship between them sparks and begins to blossom.(Previously named "Backdoor Neighbours" on fanfiction.net)
Relationships: Ruby Rose/Weiss Schnee, Weiss Schnee/Neptune Vasilias
Series: The Love Story of Ruby Rose and Weiss Schnee [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2115549
Comments: 198
Kudos: 229





	1. Opening Page

**Author's Note:**

> Hello everyone! Firstly, the notes will usually be at the end except for the beginning of the story :3
> 
> Also, I actually posted this story a while back but only on fanfiction.net, and I will be posting this alongside re-updating the story on that site too. Though I do believe the experience would be better here on Ao3 as I might include doodles in each chapter and it is much easier to reply to comment here.
> 
> Additionally this is the first part of a series, so look out for the next part when I finish this story :D
> 
> Other than that, enjoy!

_**Love is everywhere. It comes in different shapes, sizes, types and colours. It can be between two friends who stick together throughout whatever. It can be formed between brothers, sisters, fathers and mothers who forged their lives together. It can be found within a special person (or people even), whom you decide to spend the rest of your lives with. Love can be even built with the animal companions you care for throughout your lives.** _

_**Firstly, I must clarify that this memoir is not only a romance story. Merely referring it to only being a romance novel is an injustice to the intent of the story, as the romance genre only ties the subject of love between the two protagonists of the story. Beyond any genres that this story may exude, this memoir is foremost a story of love.** _

_**Truly, doing a story on love can be the most difficult. It may seem easy in retrospect but there are too many different variants of love that can be done within a story. You see, love can be both easy and complicated at the same time. It is what makes humans complex.** _

_**So, writing a memoir based on love was a challenge I took on. One where I had to use my own and others’ experiences and memories all mixed together into this book, full of different stories of love. However, in every story there has to be a backbone, a sort of baseline where all the small memories and lessons are mixed together… And luckily for me, I know two people, whom are very dear to my heart, who experienced and taught me all about love in their own story;** _

_**The Love Story of Ruby Rose and Weiss Schnee.** _


	2. The Gut Feeling

* * *

**_One of the first lessons I was ever told about love is that it does not start immediately, that you would first need to have that chance meeting before anything could ever start. Sure, I have heard of stories of ‘love at first sight’ but I believe it is not exactly ’sight’ (basing it on sight is quite shallow if you ask me). Ruby Rose remembered and described her first meeting with Weiss Schnee as some sort of ‘gut feeling’. It was recognisable enough for her to remember that moment as the start of something, she was not sure of what, but of something…_ **

* * *

It was a hot summer’s day when Ruby first saw her. The crickets echoed their tune amongst the grass and the cicadas chattered in the walls. Under the sun that blazed upon the earth, Ruby lounged on a recliner in the comfort and protection of her house, four fans faced her as she sipped on a cold glass of lemonade. She had her eyes glued to the TV, watching reruns of the Avatar series when she heard a shrill voice from her backyard. With her curiosity peaked, she set down the lemonade, the ice clinking against the glass.

She went upstairs and peered out of her bedroom window, into the backyard of her backdoor neighbour’s house. Ruby’s eyes registered the colour of white that reflected from below. It was an alabaster haired woman, whose index finger pointed at a box, as she directed a sky blue-haired boy to bring boxes of that specific section into the two-storied house. The short petite girl wore her hair into an elegant bun, a sort of crown nestled around it. Ruby marvelled at the number of boxes and trucks in the driveway and backyard… This girl was rich.

From downstairs, she heard the Avatar opening prologue rang, as it started another episode. She rolled her eyes at the prospect of a stuck-up girl for a neighbour and travelled downstairs to continue her lazy day.

* * *

It was a cool summer’s night when Weiss first saw her. The night’s cool breeze brushed the strands hair from her ponytail against cheek. The sound of music resounded through the neighbourhood, from the people who blasted classical music to rock from the speakers of their cars. She tuned out the loud racket, and glanced towards the sky from her second-floor balcony… She couldn’t see the stars that were visible from her family’s estate. However, this reflection was interrupted from the loud countdown being yelled from below… from her backdoor neighbour’s backyard. Her eyes darted down to see three girls, as they stood on the green grass with sparklers in their hands.

Then…

At the number one, when the clock struck twelve and fireworks bloomed into the sky. When the old year closed but opened the door to the anew, two eyes finally met.

Blue met silver.

The brunette with dyed red tips tilted her head in curiosity. Weiss blinked back. Neither smiled, they just stared blankly at each other.

“Ruby!”

The woman who donned red tore herself away from Weiss’ inquisitive gaze, as she instead responded to the tall blonde and a girl with a bow.

Weiss leaned on her left hand and look towards the sky…

Ruby…

The sound of fireworks rumbled through her chest.

A thought crossed her mind… The New Year suddenly seemed more daunting.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you everyone who is excited for the return of this story :D 
> 
> I am also very excited and eager to just upload everything at once! But I wanted to work on the second one while uploading this one so I'm staying on task :D
> 
> Also it is very exciting to see some of you all return with me! I even recognise some of you so if feels very much like a warm welcome :)
> 
> Anyways, there are some new content for older fans of this series along with a piece of art (which btw if you wanna follow tumblr updates for this have a lookie [here](https://www.tumblr.com/blog/ari-kkat) :D), but I've really got nothing else to say except I'll see you all tomorrow :D


	3. Painting a Second Chance

* * *

**_Love sometimes needs a second chance. I remember laughing quite a bit after Ruby Rose stated this lesson to me. She fumbled over her words, saying that in some cases this is not true. In which she is correct, hence making the concept of love just a little bit more complicated. However, she did add that for people who truly deserve it and may be in need of love, should be given a second chance… that without the chance she got soon later, this love story would have never even existed…_ **

* * *

The cicadas chimed with Ruby as the girl giggled to herself while she heard Yang, her sister, argue with the washing machine from inside the house. The sounds of obnoxious clangs rang throughout the air as the blonde hit the metal machine repetitively to urge it to work.

Ruby then turned to her horrific task, to hang the clothes on the washing line.

She gripped on the two pegs on the hand and reached for a wet shirt from the basket as if it was a gun in a holster. With her eyes shut tightly she rose a little higher, by the balls of her feet. Ruby looked up in despair as her hands full of the pegs and the shirt grabbed at thin air rather than the clothesline itself. She took another deep breath and shut her eyes once again. With all the willpower in the world she jumped up to it.

**Flick**

Ruby fell down onto the grass in surprise; an guttural yell came out of her throat as her butt came into contact with the ground, the shirt and pegs landed by her side. Her eyes stayed closed tight at the feeling of a cold, wet and slimy liquid on the back of her neck. Her hand slowly reached for the substance, opening her eyes to stare at the pure white liquid, and suddenly fresh paint permeated her nose.

“Rubes! Don’t tell me you fell again for trying to reach the clothesline.”

Ruby replied instantly, “Nope, not this time!”

With that line the short girl’s head rapidly searched her surroundings the cluttered backyard the same as always… which caused her eyes to rise and land on the wooden fence that separated her and her backdoor neighbour’s backyard.

Behold, paint leaked through the gaps to her side of the fence.

The perfect paint job from the other side had transformed into sloppy strokes towards the top of the fence. Through the gaps of the barrier, Ruby could see her new neighbour as she cursed to herself quietly, loud enough for Ruby to hear her.

With a growl of anger rumbling at the base of her throat, Ruby frustratedly yelled out, “HEY! You over there!!! You just flicked paint on me!!!”

Ruby heard a paint can clang on to the ground before some sort of metal chair was dragged across the concrete of the backyard, to the fence. A few loud and annoyed footsteps later, the neighbour’s head managed to peak over the fence, as the girl heaved herself up on her tippy toes so her upper torso can see Ruby’s backyard as well.

“Well, EXCUSE me, but if your idiotic friend wasn’t banging on that poor washing machine my concentration would have NOT ruined!” The girl scowled angrily back.

“HEY! Don’t call my sister idiotic! Yang is just helping me out!”

Yang poked her head out of the open door that separated the backyard to the laundry, “Someone mention me?”

The neighbour let out a growl of annoyance, “OH NOW LOOK! You called her out. Which by the way, Miss Yang can you please stop that incessant banging, it will disturb everyone else if you continue on!”

Yang got a mischievous glint in her eye, “Hey! Just so you know people are always begging for an encore of that in the bedroom.” After she delivered her line, she watched as her sister and the white-haired girl stared blankly at her.

“…”

“…”

“Come on! Since there’s no potential for a pun, the next best thing is an innuendo!”

“…”

“… Yang…”

“Yes lil’ sis?”

“Just go back inside.”

“Ah, okay.”

As the blonde trotted back inside, too jolly for the tension outside, Ruby and her neighbour had started a staring contest. Weiss broke it, as she decided not to partake in the childish game.

“Goodness, I cannot believe that I have to put up with you two numbskulls for the rest of my time here!”

Tight lipped, Ruby snapped back, “As if I ever wanted a prissy and stuck-up shorty as a neighbour.”

“Hey! Don’t forget you are short too.”

“…”

“…”

The neighbour shot the last glare before she stepped down, as her arms felt the wooden splinters dig into her skin. After the sound of the glass door which slid open but zipped loudly shut, Ruby crossed her arms and headed inside, as she swung the door open and slammed the metal grating of the door shut.

* * *

As Weiss winced at the loud slam of her backdoor neighbour’s door. She rolled her eyes and sat on the white leather couch that was situated in the middle of the room, surrounded by unopened boxes. Fiddled with her hands, the sudden silence made her feel odd and… isolated… She had moved in hopes of being independent and to have the option of making friends outside of her social circle… and now she had just ruined it. She pulled her phone out of the pocket of her shorts, unsure whether to call Neptune or not. She placed the phone on the couch and decided to instead take a shower to wash off the paint.

* * *

Ruby stomped into the kitchen, where Yang drank a cold bottle of iced tea. The younger sister roughly opened the fridge door and pulled out the familiar blue Home Ice Cream box. She inspected the flavour. Mango dipped in vanilla. She tore the transparent plastic of the dessert and travelled to the couch. She plopped on the crimson plush couch. Her teeth clamped on to the cold food, as she bit off a part of the food. Her mannerism made her shiver from the sheer coldness of the food.

Yang had slowly followed her sister into the lounge room, and leaned against the entrance of the room.

“Rubes?”

“Hmph…” Ruby murmured as she munched on her ice cream and kept her gaze towards the ground.

“… You just had a bad start okay.”

Ruby glowered back at her sister, “Like you were any help… You could have at least tried.”

Yang felt the pit of her stomach drop at the guilt. “You are right… It is kinda my fault too, I guess I should’ve been gentler with Ol’ Bessie, aye?”

Upon hearing the name Ruby felt her frown disappear and chuckled lightly to herself, “Oh yes, Ol’ Bessie.”

Yang continued further, “Anyways, why do you even want to have a good relationship with her? I have bad blood with my neighbour and I’m still alive.”

Ruby rolled her eyes, “Well, I don’t want to have to get into a heated argument with her every time I exit that door. There is no way I want to repeat of the lawn mower incident.”

Yang scoffed, “Just so you know he could have almost shaved my head off if he didn’t have a bad leg!”

“But that doesn’t mean you have to hold his ‘girlfriend’ hostage.”

“If he really wanted to hurt me, lil’ Sharon of the gnomes is going to be on the chopping block!”

The siblings both busted into laughter at the memory.

As Ruby wiped some tears of laughter from the corner of her eyes, Yang gazed on her thoughtfully before sighing once again.

“Sorry again, I should’ve had your back earlier.”

Ruby sighed as she flipped the paddle pop stick, before sticking the last piece of chomped ice cream in her mouth.

“Don’t worry, it is kinda my fault too… sure she was rude but I wasn’t being nice to her either… I actually insulted her… honestly she’ll probably just won’t ever talk to me again… she doesn’t look like the type to have a vendetta like your neighbors.”

Yang groaned as she walked over to the couch and plopped herself next to her sister, “But still I wasn’t any help, you were right there…” Yang put a hand on her sister’s shoulder, “It’s only been a few days since the year started, you’ll have plenty of chances to make amends with her! Oh, maybe you can ask around and see if anyone knows her well enough to know her fave flowers!”

“Yang, I’m trying to apologise, not woo her.”

“Okay, okay… message received.” Yang chuckled as she put her hands up in mock defense, “Whelp! Whatever you do, you’ll figure it out.” Yang added as she got up from the couch.

“Yang! That’s not even remotely helpful!”

“Well I’ll do the rest of the laundry. How’s that for helpful?”

“Actually, that’ll be nice.”

“Of course it is! I’m sparing you from you struggling to even reach the clothesline.”

“Yang!”

The blonde snorted in amusement as she bent down to the coffee table, picking up Ruby’s phone and throwing it to its owner.

“Why don’t you order in some lunch then? Your choice.” Yang finished as she disappeared back into the kitchen to head to the laundry.

“Yes! Cookies!”

A quick scuffle echoed through the house as Yang peered over the entrance to the lounge room.

“Don’t even bother! There is no way I’m going to deal with a sugar high version of you later.”

“Ugh fine!” Ruby replied as she stared back at the phone screen.

Hearing the backdoor open and swing shut she sighed, hopefully she would get a second chance.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> With this chapter, other than adding the usual thing in the beginning, I changed and added to the ending. As I was proofreading this specific chapter I realised how odd it ended and so I tried to tie it back to the overall theme :D
> 
> Anyways, as always thanks for reading and the continued support! So happy that I'm finally delivering this fic back and glad you all are enjoying it too :D
> 
> See you in the next chapter!


	4. Officially Meeting

* * *

**_Love can be unexpected. That is one of the lessons that Weiss Schnee taught me. She related this anecdote back to the moment she first ‘officially’ met Ruby Rose. From their first ever meeting, she never would have thought that a nonsensical little squabble would ever bloom into something amazing and special to her…_ **

* * *

“RUBY!”

The girl lifted her head from her 3DS and faced the door, where her sister paraded in with a black and white corgi behind her, attached to a leash. “Hi Yang! What’s up?”

Yang stopped in the middle of the living room, “I have an errand to run and I don’t want to ruin Zwei’s walking schedule, he hates it when I do… LOOK AT HIM! He’s doing that puppy eyes thing again!”

Ruby looked down at the little corgi by her sister’s feet, “Aw, Zwei… of course I’ll walk you!”

The little canine bounded towards Ruby, the leash being yanked out of Yang’s hand, which left a bit of rope burn. Yang yelped in surprise as she rubbed her hand to soothe the pain, “Thanks Rubes! I stopped by Blake’s but she screeched like a cat when Zwei innocently pounced on her.”

Ruby scratched the head of the dog, “It’s nice to see you boy, Yang is so lucky to have you. Anyways, the usual route sis?”

Yang grinned, “Always, and when you get back hold on to him a bit, I’ll come back for him when I’m done!” With that the blonde skipped towards her motorbike parked outside. She put her helmet on and revved the bike before she sped off.

Ruby’s 3DS clicked shut then stuffed it deeply as she could into jean pocket, mentally noting to continue the game later. Zwei patiently waited by the door, the leash in his mouth. He watched as Ruby fished the keys from the hook nearby the door and shoved it in her other pocket. Ruby bent down to grab his leash, but the dog instead grabbed it himself and pranced outside. He stopped by the mailbox and his head tilted in confusion.

Ruby stared back in bewilderment at Zwei.

The dog let out a bark to snap Ruby from her trance.

Ruby giggled and grinned, “Yeah ZWEI!” She announced as she shut the door close and pumped her fist in the air, “FOR DOG INEPENDENCE!!!”

Zwei barked in agreement, as he waited for his temporary owner to catch up and walked beside her in the pavement. “Do you know the route boy?”

“Ruff!”

* * *

Weiss sat on a bench in the middle of the park, a leg over the other as she flipped through another page of her book while she twirled the hair in her side ponytail. The park wasn’t particularly big, but it caught her eye when she drove around the neighbourhood while she was moving into her house. The park was surrounded by backyards of houses but was still relatively quiet.

A butterfly landed on her hand, she smiled at watched it fly away into the sky. As she lifted her head from her book, she spotted a very familiar person at the entrance of the park.

Ruby…

As the girl came into view, their eyes met.

Ruby stopped in the middle of her tracks, unsure of how to approach her neighbour.

Weiss was about to turn her head away in discontentment until she felt the pit of her stomach drop again. Her chest claustrophobic with guilt… On that day with her first interaction with Ruby, her thoughts occupied her afternoon. She had dreaded this meeting. She didn’t even apologize, as it was technically her fault… and by the way Ruby reacted, it just made her feel more awkward.

However, an adorable muffled bark broke her trance. Weiss’ eyes trailed down to an animal that bounded towards her, it was a dog with a leash in his mouth... The corgi didn’t slow down as he bumped into Weiss’ legs. For the first time in the week she’s been here, Weiss giggled as the dog jumped on to the seat beside her. The dog mouth opened as he panted, which effectively dropped his leash on to the chair and dangled off to the ground.

Weiss gave into the urge and scratched the dog at the bottom of his chin. The canine whimpered in delight as his left foot came up and started to thump in reaction. “You are such a good boy…” Weiss’ right hand flipped over the name tag on his collar, “… Zwei… and you walked yourself all the way to the park! Someone’s a little overachiever.” Weiss the grabbed the sides of his face and scrubbed it, Zwei’s short fur being massaged in all different types of directions.

“Ahem…”

Weiss tore her gaze away from the dog to see Ruby, who had walked up to her and awkwardly stood there, “… I see you really like dogs.”

Despite Weiss’ urge to apologize, her eyes narrowed in suspicion, “What brings you here?”

“Umm… What?”

“Just why?” Weiss shifted uncomfortably on the bench, from the tension in the air. “Why are you here? Were you looking for me?”

Ruby just stared at the shorter girl in uncertainty, too hesitant and generally confused with Weiss’ thoughts to say anything.

“Are you stalking me? Cause I don’t appreciate stalkers… and… it is… VERY UNPROFESSIONAL TO LET YOUR DOG JUST WALK HIMSELF!”

Even Zwei stopped and tilted his head confusion at Weiss’ reasoning.

After a beat of silence Ruby leaned back in laughter at the absurdity of the situation.

Weiss blushed in embarrassment, “Hey! I’m asking you a serious question!”

Ruby continued to laugh at Weiss’ adorableness.

“Are you even listening to me? HEY! You dolt! I’m still over here!” Weiss tried to remain serious, despite the small smile growing on to her face. “Excuse me?”

Only then, Ruby’s laughs began to die down. She swiped a tear from her eyes and then got awkward and timid once again, “Um… Sorry for laughing I just… Um… Oh! I didn’t even introduce myself! My name is Ruby! Ruby Rose!”

“That, I already knew.”

Ruby, who rubbed the back of her neck stopped, “You… already knew?”

“I heard your sister call out to you during New Years… I guess I never forgot.”

Ruby’s heart skipped a beat at the revelation, “Um… Yang is pretty loud…” Ruby felt the silence awkwardly cast upon them as she stared at her feet in shyness, “Um… Anyways, I think we got off the wrong foot.”

Weiss eyes looked down as well, “Um, I’ve been meaning to say… I’m sorry… for the paint. It is truly my fault that you were… attacked by my paint?”

The both of them just shared a look and then let out giggles. As Ruby laughed, she watched Weiss as the girl’s eyes was closed and her chest reverberated with laughter. A fond look flashed for moment across her face.

Weiss started to feel Ruby’s gaze upon her, so she cleared her throat; “It is true that we were at odds with each other at a… very small situation. That was quite immature of me…”

Ruby just shot Weiss with another smile, “Don’t worry about that. As you said it was a small situation, so it’s all fine…?”

Weiss understood Ruby’s implication, “Weiss… Weiss Schnee… I’m sorry I called you and your sister numbskulls.”

“… I’m sorry for calling you short and prissy.” Ruby said as she sat next to Weiss on the bench, Zwei wedged between them.

“… So, Ruby Rose? How did you end up with a curious name like that?”

Ruby visibly lightened up and chattered excitedly, as Weiss listened for the rest of the afternoon.

* * *

“And so Zwei just walked off with his leash in his mouth. He doesn’t even need me to walk him! He knew the whole route himself!!” Ruby exclaimed to Weiss.

The pair had gotten over their first impression of each other over the afternoon thanks to Ruby’s adventurous stories. Now as the sun settled under the horizon and the now stars shined brightly upon them, they decided to walk back together, as their homes were in the same general direction.

“I see, I guess Zwei is just one of a kind?” Weiss stated as she and Ruby observed the corgi from his backside as he walked in front of them, leash in mouth full of drool.

“One of a kind? Years ago, Zwei somehow was able to mail himself accidentally before!”

“Really!?”

“Yeah! He jumped in one of those cylindrical boxes as there was food inside and dad, not knowing the little pupper was there, just taped the box and mailed it off to my Uncle Qrow!”

“How did he even survive?”

“I don’t know but we worried so we quickly took a plane to see Uncle Qrow, and you should have seen his reaction! When he got the package, Zwei literally popped out and all he stared at his vodka flask for a full hour in pure confusion!”

The two shared a laugh as they stopped in front of Ruby’s house. At the driveway, Yang was on her phone while she leaned on her motorbike. Hearing the sound of laughter, she glanced up and saw the unlikely pair engaged in conversation.

Yang observed Ruby’s face, and smirked.

“Ah, it’s my cue to go!” Ruby breathed out.

“Yeah, I’ll just have to walk around the curb to get to my house.”

“Oh, ‘kay.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah.”

Weiss smiled at their odd way of ending the conversation and began to walk off.

“Hey neighbour! I’ll see you around?”

Weiss turned around and chuckled, “I guess we’ll see. Well, bye for now.” And with a wave, Weiss walked slowly and disappeared past the bend.

“Hm… I guess it wasn’t me who went overtime this time.”

Ruby rolled her eyes with a smile, “Heya sis.”

“You both just got of the wrong start~”

“Shuddup Yang.”

“So… what’s her name? Tell me~”

“Yangggggg!” Ruby wailed as she headed inside the house, Zwei in tow.

“Come on, your ice princess must have a name, I need to know before you go off and save her from her white pristine tower!”

“YANG!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! I'm happy that some of you are enjoying my art and even followed me on tumblr 😆
> 
> There's nothing much changed in this chapter, I'm still pretty satisfied with it either way so I only added the extra stuff and you've all check it out :D
> 
> Anyways, I need to wake up early tomorrow so I'll see you all then :D


	5. Coincidences

* * *

**_Now this lesson was taught to me by Yang Xiao-Long. She taught me that love sometimes needs coincidences to be moved along. She proudly gives herself the credit of being the catalyst that made ‘The Love Story of Ruby Rose and Weiss Schnee’ really happen, due to the coincidence of her odd Weiss…_ **

* * *

“YES!!!” Ruby yelled while she was on her phone.

Ruby’s outburst even made the cicadas in the wall shut up.

“… Um yes, I mean. I promise I won’t be shouting like that during my shifts… Yep I’m still fine with what I proposed during the interview… Oh really?! That is really cool Sun! Discounts for the win!... Yep, I am so happy to be a part of the team… Thank you! I’ll see you on Monday in two days… Bye!” Ruby hung up on her phone and jumped in glee.

Blake put down her book and watched Ruby as she danced around the room. The bookworm was stretched across the couch like a cat, her legs dangled off the arms. As Ruby started to get closer to the couch Blake reached down and with her hand and picked up one of the Switch controllers on the floor, from when she and Ruby competed with each other on Mario Kart earlier, away from the stomps of death from Ruby’s feet.

Blake maneuvered herself around, so she was properly seated on the chair, to avoid Ruby as the brunette promptly plopped herself beside her. Ruby shoved the phone into her face with a bright smile. “LOOK! I got the job!”

Blake took the phone from Ruby and read the text message the employer just left now, confirming Ruby’s shifts, “I see you will get more money than you usually would now.”

“Yeah! The channel is good and all, but I shouldn’t rely on it as a source of income. Thank cookies that EBgames accepted me! I can’t think of going to a café and not being able to eat the cookies on display! Which reminds me…”

Blake eyes followed Ruby as she ran to the kitchen and fetched a jar of cookies from one of the lower cabinets, “Celebratory Cookies!”

Blake checked her phone and asked, “We could celebrate with Yang. The boss of her job is pretty lenient and would let us in while she is one break.”

With a cookie in her mouth she agreed, “… Yesh! I neewd to bweak the newsh to her!”

Blake froze, “Did you just… make a pun?”

Ruby stopped and briefly choked on her cookie, “… Ack… AHHHHH! Let’s just leave before it gets worse!” The brunette yelled as she flailed her arms in the air and ran out of the door.

* * *

Ruby and Blake stood outside the largest building in town, in awe. The rectangular building, in its white and blue glory loomed over the two friends, its shadow shielded the girls from the sun. The building sat on a monument of steps; the white concrete added to its clean look. The door at the base of the building opened, which allowed a brief gust of air-conditioned wind brush against the girls for a moment.

“… Did they get a new paint job?” Ruby asked as she pointed to the dark blue accents added to the infrastructure, “Cause the pop of colour makes it look much sleeker!”

Blake tilted her head in suspicion, “Huh… I thought Yang’s boss didn’t like the colour blue.”

She turned to hear Ruby’s input, but the excitable girl already ran through the entrance, the doors still swinging back and forth from her energy.

Blake shook her head with a smile on her face as she walked up the steps and entered, a sigh escaped her lips as the cool air enveloped her. She looked around the lobby; it seemingly also was renovated as well. Content with the interior she approached the front desk to greet the girl behind it, “Hey Velvet, it seems boss put on some glasses and saw the state the building was in.”

Instead of a reply, all she heard was the woman trying to reason with Ruby.

“Come on Velvet! You know us by now and you know that the boss is fine with us coming here to visit Yang, so if you’ll just let us through…”

The woman behind the counter waved both of her hands in front of her in defense, “I’m sorry Ruby but now I can’t just simply let you though. You don’t understand… that boss you are talking about, he is not-”

Ruby puffed, “I need to tell Yang the news whether you like it or not so… bye!”

At her last word, the brunette zoomed out of the room in a red blur. Blake face palmed, “I’m sorry Velvet, I’ll just go get her before this situation gets messy.”

With that the bookworm ran after Ruby, albeit in a slower pace. Velvet, flustered by the sudden drama called out from the desk, “BLAKE!!! You don’t understand either! You… can’t…” Velvet sighed in defeat, “Just walk in… I’m gonna get fired, aren’t I Yastuhashi?”

The muscular guy, who had just entered the door with a box of mail, had just witnessed the situation, “I’m not sure, but I think you’ll be fine.”

* * *

Ruby took drastic turns as she rushed to the break room. Multiple employees of the banking company gasped in surprise as they either jumped away from the blur or just sidestepped casually. Quite a few of them were used to the antics that Ruby brought with her every time she visited.

Blake just followed behind, her apologies accompanied with her nervous and embarrassed manner due to Ruby. She ran for a few meters more in the hallway, until she just gave up and began to walk in a brisk pace to the break room. As Blake continued her way to the room, she met up with one of her other friends.

“Hello Blake!” A redhead greeted, as she pulled up beside Blake, a stack of papers was cradled in her arms.

“Oh, hi Pyrrha. I haven’t seen you since at Yang’s party, when you were pulled away from the party due to a certain blonde boy…”

The said woman chuckled, “Oh yes, I remember that night very clearly…”

Blake raised her eyebrow in suspicion and amusement, “Oh… Very clearly I see… How did your night with Jaune go then? If I remember correctly, someone turned up at my house to return my book… with a turtleneck… in the middle of summer.”

Pyrrha’s face flushed red as stopped in her tracks, as she started to fumble with the last page of the stack of papers, “Yep… A wonderful night…”

Blake gave Pyrrha a smile of congratulations. Pyrrha passed an equally grateful smile. This peaceful exchange was however interrupted when someone jumped in between the women, with a hand on a shoulder of both girls…

“You mean a wonderfully spicy night! The ‘battle scars’ from that night seemed _very_ passionate if you asked me!” Yang coyly with a grin on her face, as she made quotation marks on her index and middle finger on the words ‘battle scars’ whilst they were on the shoulders.

“YANG!” Pyrrha exclaimed as physically flinched in embarrassment, which caused the papers in her arms to all flutter to the floor due to loose grip she had on them in the first place. Pyrrha, face still painted red, muttered incoherent cusses as she squatted down to pick up the thousands of paper she had just dropped… At least each of the papers had page numbers.

Blake shook her head as she face palmed once again, “Yang, I was at least subtle, we are in your workplace for goodness sakes, at least have some decency.”

“Well Blake, you know me! Always brash… Wait, what are you doing here? I didn’t give in any clearance beforehand.” Yang stated, with her eyes wide

Blake tilted her head in confusion, “Clearance? Yang, you and I both know that your boss doesn’t even take the place seriously. He usually just lets us in whenever Ruby and I turn up. Why would we need clearance?”

Pyrrha rose up from the floor in concern, “That is because he is not our boss anymore… I thought you and your sister had permission today… Yang don’t help me, just get them out as soon as possible.”

Yang froze, “Them? Oh god… Ruby’s here too? Come on Blake, let’s get her before I get in deep trouble.”

“Wait what?” Blake couldn’t continue as her arm was pulled by Yang, who dragged her to the break room.

“I’m presuming she is there as you guys know my break time is about now.”

“When did your boss change?”

“Towards the start of the year. Now please walk so I can get you guys out as soon as possible, she is gonna be so mad when she finds out. You two basically broke into the bank!”

“Who? Not your boss? Who’s your boss?”

Unfortunately, her question wasn’t answered as Yang reached the break room and flung the door open, “RUBY!” All the occupants in the room jolted at the sudden outburst. Ruby stared at her sister confused, with one of the cookies from the lunch bar half in her mouth. Yang glared, “WE ARE LEAVING NOW!”

Ruby confused by the commotion her sister brought, walked up to her sister calmly and excitedly told her what she came for, “What’s the problem Yang? I came to tell you I got the job!”

Yang however faced the closed door instead and half-heartedly said, “Yeah, and yeah… That’s great but your new job is gonna be the cost of mine!”

“What are you talking about?”

“Friggin Ice Queen is the new boss!” Yang started to pull Ruby to the door where Blake waited. Blake began to open the door out so they could scram before they were noticed.

“Ice Queen? Isn’t Junior the boss? He doesn’t care if we come unannounced or not.”

However, silence filled the room as Blake pushed the door open to reveal Weiss with a few guards behind her. Ruby’s backdoor neighbour looked more uptight than usual. She still wore a white outfit, but this time it was a white trouser suit. She had her arms crossed; a finger repeatedly tapped on one of her arms. With a cold tone, she answered Ruby, “And that is why he was fired.” With her cold exterior still up, she turned to the guards, “Sorry to get you three so riled up on your first day, just go back to your stations. I can handle this.”

With a nod the guards silently left.

Weiss glared at the three girls and looked behind them, “I am very sorry to take time out of your break Flynt, but can you take these girls to my office, I’ve got to tie some things up before I can speak to these three idiots.”

“No problem boss.”

Weiss rolled her eyes at the nickname the employee gave her. She rather be just called Weiss but most of them decided to call her that for fun. She began to make her way out of the room.

Yang, with sweat concealed on her brow joked, “Come on Weiss, I work here, I can just take them two there.”

Weiss stopped and gave Yang an ‘are you serious look’ and snapped quickly back, “Yang, I know you well enough that you would try to get out them of here.”

Yang sighed in defeat, “Of course boss.”

* * *

Now the trio of women waited in Weiss’ huge office, at the top of the building.

The room was well lit, as one of the walls were just two large windows, which allowed the sun’s rays to illuminate the room. The floor was carpeted blue and on the three other walls were fancy wooden shelves of books. Blake being polite avoided the two shelves on the sides of the room that contained data on the bank and only looked towards the back of the room where the door is. There the wooden shelf that covered the entire wall was just filled with numerous critically good novels.

The two sisters instead sat in the middle of the room, on two of the three chairs that were provided by Flynt to sit on while they waited.

Yang listened to Ruby as her younger sister apologized profusely for trespassing into the building. Ruby expressed her concerns that she had now ruined her sister’s job at the bank.

Yang, who already came to terms with the information, couldn’t find it in herself to be mad at her sister. Yang instead ruffled Ruby’s head and told her not to worry, that Weiss might be lenient since both of them weren’t told of this new information. She then allowed Ruby to relish in the fact that she had just got a job and urged her younger sister to tell her all the details to pass the time.

After Ruby’s excitement about her new job died down, they sat in comfortable silence, only the flips of pages can be heard as Blake read through one of the novels on the third chair beside them. But there was still a question that droned in Ruby’s mind.

“So, Yang… Weiss is the new boss?”

Yang perked at Ruby’s odd question, “Ice Queen? Well yeah, she is definitely a better boss than Junior ever was. She doesn’t always stay up in this huge ass office of hers but, in her free time she comes down and walks around to greet everyone. Also, to check if everything is running smoothly.”

She smiled and lifted a leg over the other, “In fact, everyone was scared of her at first but then we all realized she does care for us… She even added a small lunch bar in the break room, so we don’t have to bring our own lunch! Man, everyone in this company loves her!”

Ruby listened to her sister, her thoughts somewhere else, “Huh…”

Yang’s brows furrowed at her sister’s reaction, “What is it sis?”

“… You and Weiss know each other?”

Yang bluntly stated the obvious, “Well yeah, she is my boss, and she does make an effort to know her employees more. She and I talk about anything whenever I’m on break. I even have her number.”

“You do?!”

“Well yeah, I guess the both of us are kinda friends now. She even watched over Zwei when you were at Blake’s house a week ago.”

“… Why didn’t you tell me this?!”

“… Why would I have to tell you? She is just your backdoor neighbour. If you wanted to, you literally can throw on her rock at her window like Romeo to get her to talk to you.”

Ruby began to babble a number of reasons of her curiousity, oblivious to the reference Yang made in that sentence.

Blake paused in the book for a moment to lean from her seat and murmured to Yang, “She’s got it bad.”

Yang just crossed her arms at the predicament, “Yep.” She said with a pop at the letter ‘p’.

They listened to Ruby for a minute before Yang decided to stop this before Ruby passed out from the amount of oxygen from her rushed speech, “Ruby, when did you last speak to her?”

“… When I walked Zwei…”

“Ruby! That was weeks ago! Basically last month! if you want to date her-”

“Date? What made you come to that conclusion?”

Yang rolled her eyes at Ruby’s sudden defensiveness, “Okay… If you want to be _friends_ with her, you gotta talk to her.”

“I know and-”

They were however interrupted by the double door into the room being opened. Weiss’ heels became muted as she strutted into her office.

Ruby used this moment to really look at Weiss, she began to feel her cheeks heat up slightly at how the white-haired women presented herself… Weiss looked really hot.

When Weiss finally sat down, she her posture slumped at her weariness and she asked three questions…

“Who are you?” She asked as she pointed to Blake.

“Why are you looking at me like I’m going to shoot you?” She pointed to Yang.

“And why are you here?” She asked as she faced Ruby, her fingers coming up to her temples to massage them.

Blake decided to go first, “Um… I’m Blake, a friend of Ruby and Yang… And I am sorry about trespassing.” She said the last line quickly.

Weiss gave a tired smile to Blake, “Nice to meet you Blake.”

She leaned over the table to politely shake the other woman’s hand.

“And do not worry, some of the other employees told me about how you and Ruby would come here to visit Yang when Junior was in charge. In which I must say, that if you haven’t notice, this place is looking much better since he no longer runs this place.”

“Yes Ms. Schnee, I have indeed noticed. It’s good you care about this place unlike him. I never really like him in the first place; he always extruded an aura of… inadequacy.”

Weiss nodded understandingly at Blake’s conclusion, “Ah yes, that you are right about. In fact, you two weren’t the only ones being allowed in without permission when he was boss. He would allow himself into the bank’s vaults to ‘borrow’ money to refurbish his club. Let’s just say that club no longer stands and that he’s… behind bars.”

She took a breath and addressed both Ruby and Blake, “And don’t fret, I won’t punish you guys this time. But I do need you two to understand that you both caused a lot of commotion within the security department… Also, next week we are finally implementing some other security measures around here, and you can’t access without a key card so don’t bother visiting your sister while she’s at work. Okay?”

The two just nodded quickly, happy to be let off with a warning.

Weiss then faced Yang, “Calm down Yang, you are not being fired.”

“YEAH!”

“And don’t call me ‘Ice Queen.’”

“As if I’m gonna stop princess!”

Weiss let out an amused sigh, “Just show these two out… Also, your break ended ten minutes ago.”

“DAMMIT!”

The three of them began to head out, Weiss shaking her head amusedly while she put on her glasses so she could start to analyze the documents in front of her.

Yang just nudged Ruby harshly in the ribs, and gestured her head towards Weiss, “You do want to become friends with her.” She whispered.

Ruby took a breath and turned to Weiss and walked up to the desk.

Yang and Blake shared a look and waited outside.

“Um… Weiss?”

Weiss looked up from her documents, “What is it Ruby?”

“Um…” Ruby fiddled with her hands, her index fingers tapped each other nervously, “Uh… As a sorry gesture about this whole thing, do you want to meet up at my house for… tea? Coffee? Anything you like we’ll get… uh… I mean, like, after you finish working for the day and… yeah.”

Weiss smiled, “I would like that.” She paused and then chuckled, “Look at us, we seriously can’t stop bringing trouble to each other.”

Ruby giggled, “Yeah.”

“Maybe if you want to just chat, do not try breaking into my bank to get my attention.” Weiss wittily quipped.

Ruby blushed a deep red as she scratched the back of her head, “Hahaha… yeah, I’ll just ask…” She waved out jazz hands, “No theatrics next time.”

They both shared a laugh.

After a few beats, they then both bid each other bye before Ruby exited the room. Once the door closed, she skipped down the hall to the elevator.

Yang and Blake, who were had their ears pressed against the door head everything that transpired in there. Yang walked with her arms behind her head, “Someone’s got a date~” She teased.

“Yang!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! How are you all today?
> 
> For this chapter, other than the per usual, I added some extra dialogue at the end there... felt like the conversation ended abruptly with not enough Ruby awkwardness 😂
> 
> And for the art piece today, I wanted to draw some Blake, since I had already drew the main ship and Zwei! But it was good practice for drawing hands 😊(and yes I used a meme for reference)
> 
> Anyways, I hope you enjoyed and see you all in the next chapter.


	6. Her Valentine

* * *

**_This story is told by everyone around me. They always like to think back to how this created a ‘situation’ around this love story. Despite how many different variations of this obstacle I was told, everyone’s stories would always somehow come to the same moral; that love can have obstacles and they come in different shapes and categories. For this story, it seems as though the first obstacle came in the form of a man named ‘Neptune Vasilias’…_ **

* * *

A week and had passed since the incident at the bank. Despite the situation at the day of the bank, Ruby and Weiss began to hang out more frequently, at either coincidental meetings at the park or Ruby jumping over the fence between both of their houses. While the idea seemed absurd to Weiss at first, she eventually did agree that it was convenient and was quicker.

Ruby sipped on the strawberry lemonade as she sat in the living room of Weiss’ house. She was sprawled across the couch as she went through the channels on the television in boredom, her red and black outfit in stark contrast of the house’s interior and furniture.

Weiss stepped down the stairs that were beside the kitchen but led into the living room. She had her hair wrapped in a towel nestled on top of her head. She wore a cute white summer dress that flowed gracefully down to her knees. In one hand she had a hair drier and in the other she had a comb, “So… why again were you waiting outside like a hopeless puppy.”

Ruby’s head bolted up from the couch. With wide eyes her jaw slightly dropped…

Was Weiss dressed up for Ruby?

Weiss walked over to the other free couch near the outlet and plugged the hair drier in. She flipped the switch down on the outlet and began to dry her hair.

Ruby watched as Weiss’ hair semi-dry hair began to dry and fly to the side of her head like flowers swaying in the wind. Her jaw only dropped even a bit more.

Ruby being silent for a few minutes got Weiss to lose focus on her hair and to face Ruby, “… Why are you staring at me?”

Ruby flinched Weiss question and quickly sat up, which only caused her fast momentum to have her fall to her other side on the couch as her chin hit the armrest with a ‘clunk’

“Ow…” Ruby wailed.

Weiss shook her head, “Dolt…”

After a few more minutes of the blow drier that filled in the silence and of Ruby who waited for the pain of the chin to go away, Weiss asked once again, “Ruby, why are you here? It’s Valentine’s Day, don’t you have anyone to hang out with for the day?”

“Well…” Ruby thought for a moment… why did she come here? Ruby rubbed her chin to alleviate the leftover of the pain, “Um… I have no one… so… I came here?”

Weiss rose an eyebrow at the statement which sounded more like a question, “So… your single? No one? You could not even hang out with your sister for the day?”

“Well, every year Yang has this thing where she meets up with her friends and they just basically do a whole blind date thing with people in their group for fun… And I don’t know anyone in there so… No go. And yeah I’ve got no ‘special person’ in the closet or something.”

Absentmindedly, as Weiss begun to braid her hair to the side, she replied, “Oh, that’s a surprise. You are pretty so I thought you had someone already.”

“Oh.” Ruby turned her head away to the television, the warmth on her cheeks bloomed into a rose pink.

“Considering the day, I guess you shouldn’t be brooding alone… especially with all the couples around in full force…”

Ruby’s blush vanished instantly as she sighed, “Ugh! I love the discounts on the all the cookies but every time I turn away from the shelf, someone just decides ‘you know what? Let’s just make out in front of the single and lonely girl who eats cookies for a living.’” Ruby pouted and crossed her arms.

Weiss leaned closer to Ruby as much as she could on a separate couch. She overlapped her arms in front of her chest on the arm of the couch as she faced Ruby with attention, “Oh, rough time at the shops today? How many couples were making out?”

“Have you been outside yet today?”

Weiss shook her head no.

“Tons! And well, me taking advantage of all the sales decided to go shopping for sweets. And I understand if you give a peck on the lips or cheek, and the hugging is fine too but, I seriously can go without the hundreds of couples making out and grinding each other in every aisle, corner and the alleyways I take for a shortcut! Like come on, that type of PDA isn’t necessary.”

Weiss nodded her head in agreement, “I totally get you, I’m not one for overly intimate public displays of affections. Some people get too… touchy at times. It ruins the experience, even when you are on a date too.”

“Ugh! I wish I could find someone so I can rub it in their faces and show them how uncomfortable I feel every damn time they come by!” Ruby ranted, her posture slouched down the couch, her feet pointed to the ceiling as she crossed her arms. 

“Why don’t you try going around and dating? Valentine’s Day is basically the holiday where I’m pretty sure there is some desperate guys you can find in the crowd.”

“Desperate? Gee Weiss, never knew I’m their emergency girl.” Ruby said, the sourness of her rant still on her tongue.

“No, you dolt! Of course I didn’t mean that!”

Ruby sighed as she stared blankly at the tv, “I would date but… for me it would be hard to find someone.”

Weiss looked at Ruby quizzically, “Too picky? I’m pretty sure online dating can narrow a bit of that down.”

Ruby buried herself more into the couch, “I really don’t like online dating… and I wouldn’t really describe it as picky…”

Before Ruby could even explain herself, the doorbell rang. Weiss checked the expensive watch on her wrist as she her mouth opened in surprise, “Oh! It’s time!”

Jumped off the couch and picked up the white and blue bag that sat beside her on the couch. She ran to the front door. Ruby leaned to the side to gain more view of Weiss at the door. After a few words exchanged with the person at the door, Weiss picked her high heels by the door on the shoe rack and walked to the living room’s entrance. As Weiss walked back, Ruby got a glance of the man at the door, his blue hair caught her eyes instantly.

“Hey Ruby, I have to go.” Weiss said as she sat on the couch and began to fasten her shoes on, “I don’t want to be rude, but I have to ask you to leave. There is no way I’m leaving you alone in this house.”

Ruby, not yet grasped the whole situation, joked, “Hot date?”

Weiss rolled her eyes and then her eyes lit up. She leaned back on the couch and craned her neck towards the front of the house, “Neptune! Come in here for a moment!”

“Sure!” A deep voice responded; thuds echoed through the short hallway.

At the entrance of living room stood a tall man, dressed up in attire that matched Weiss look. His blue hair was swept to the side as he had one hand in the pocket while he had one touched the top banister of the entrance, “Thanks for letting me in for a moment. It is sure hot out there-” His eyes landed on Ruby, a startled but friendly smile appeared on his face, “Um… hi? Was I interrupting something? Because I’m pretty sure we made plans Snow Angel?”

Ruby’s eye twitched at the pet name Neptune gave Weiss… Wait, why was she mad?

Weiss stood up, walked to stand beside Neptune, who surprised Weiss with the weight of his arm that rested on her shoulders. After a small ‘eep’ in surprise, she shakily put a smile on her face, “Neptune, this is Ruby.”

Neptune smiled and greeted, “Yo.”

“And Ruby this is Neptune, my boyfriend.”

Ruby froze as a meek greeting escaped her lips, “Um… Hi?”

“And Neptune, don’t worry. Ruby just needed some company for a bit of time today.”

Weiss turned to face Ruby, “I am sorry, but today we both have an important reservation to attend-”

“As it is our anniversary!” Neptune added proudly.

Weiss chuckled, “Yes, our one-year anniversary. Anyways, I know it’s kind of rude but I need you to go back home. I’ll talk to you later so you can finish your rant then.”

Ruby forced a smile on her face, “Sure! No problem, I’ll just exit the way I came.”

The brunette walked to the sliding glass doors, opened them and kicked her foot back, as she revved herself. She then ran and then kicked herself off the ground as she maneuvered her hand on one of the pots nearby and jumped over the fence professionally.

Weiss shook her head in an affectionate manner, “Oh Ruby…”

Neptune on the other hand, eyes bulged in his skull, “Is your friend a parkour expert or something? That was amazing! Does she do that every time?!”

She nodded her head as she turned both of them away from the door, “She’s amazing right?”

Neptune eyed her carefully at this statement.

* * *

Ruby leaned against the fence; hand on her left side of her chest… Why did it hurt? She shook her head before she lifted herself away from the wood and headed inside.

She walked into her kitchen and grabbed a few of those discounted cookies she bought and strolled into her living room. She plopped herself down on the couch and munched.

Then everything was… still. Despite the fan in the corner that whirled from side to side and the ticks that echoed from the minute hand as it ran its usual lap, it felt like nothing was moving.

The silence began to eat at Ruby, so she decided to turn the television on.

_“Let’s do it! Let’s go on a vacation! Just the two of us, anywhere you want.”_

_“Really? Okay… I’ve always wanted to see what the spirit-”_

Ruby grumbled at the romantic scene. Click. She changed the channel.

_“ynonna!”_

_“I can’t.”_

_“Please! I love her.”_

Ruby groaned. Click.

_“I’ll never be that girl.”_

_“I’m not asking you, to be **that** girl… I want you Nico… Just the way that you are.”_

Ruby growled at another romantic scene; Valentine’s Day was just rubbing it in her face. Click.

_“Oh… Um… Well, I just can stop thinking.”_

_“So… Um… Did you say I was different?”_

_“And you hadn’t before-”_

_“Of course not… When would I have ever.”_

Ruby muted the television. Closing her eyes, she put her hands in a mock praying position as she held the remote tighter, unmuting and quickly changing the channel.

_“But you could have chosen any one of those women.”_

_“I don’t want other women.”_

_“But I, uh-”_

Ruby wailed in frustration at the inevitable kiss scene as she turned the television off and flung the remote into the kitchen. She stuffed a cookie in her mouth as she fell back on the couch, her legs swung up to also rest on the couch.

After a large gulp of the cookies in her mouth, she thought out loud.

“Damn! Why did all the romantic gay stuff have to be on the tv.”

She felt her heart palpitate even faster, which created an ache that was similar to before… A flash of white hair crossed her thoughts.

Her eyes widened.

“Well dammit!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here comes the dreaded boyfriend! Poor Ruby!
> 
> But in regards to any chapter changes, I didn't change much other than some better clarifications in the writing AND I added some shows to the ones that Ruby was watching :D
> 
> I distinctly remember asking people if they can guess which shows they are from, SO... for both the new and old readers, can you guess the shows that are mentioned :3 (even if you somehow remember some the original answers, I did say I added some new references for you)
> 
> (BTW, if any of you ever do end up making art please tag #lovelybeginnings on tumblr cause I would love to see it and maybe even feature it here :D)
> 
> Anyways, happy reading and I'll see y'all tomorrow with the next chapter!


	7. The Realisation of Ruby Rose

* * *

**_Love may begin small… and quite insignificant at first. Once again Ruby Rose taught me this lesson, with the help of Blake Belladonna. Contrary to the typical romantic tropes, she did not just suddenly love Weiss. It started out as a small crush, probably one just out of sheer admiration she usually would joke about. This of course did develop into something much stronger. However, there was a moment of time that Ruby Rose thought this crush would just fade…_ **

* * *

The sunset gave Blake a warm glow as she walked around aimlessly in the suburbs, after she had shopped around in the mall today. She felt her bow atop her head tug at the gentle breeze that flew by, she relished in the scent of flowers it brought with it. This tranquility was however interrupted by a harsh vibration from the pocket of her jeans. She fished the phone out to see that Ruby had messaged her,

**Ruby: heya blake… are u doing anything?**

Blake stopped in her path… ‘Heya Blake’... Ruby was up to something. Blake eyed the screen before she hesitantly sent her reply.

**Blake: No… why?**

**Ruby: can u just walk by my house?????? like now??????**

Blake paused for a moment. She turned and started to walk to Ruby’s house. She had passed Yang’s house earlier and Ruby’s was only a bit further from that.

**Blake: Sure… But what are you exactly asking?**

**Ruby: ummmmmm**

**Ruby: i’m totally not hiding or anything**

“BLAKE!!!” A familiar voice yelled out.

Blake felt the hairs at the back of her neck raise at the sudden loud sound. She jumped on her spot and turned away from her phone to see Yang.

The sounds of a hose reached her ears.

Blake looked at Yang’s hand to see the blonde held a green hose in her right hand, as the water sprinkled from the nozzle. Blake internally groaned at the sight of the older sister’s state of plants. Her eyes followed the water as it exited the hose and dripped down a barren piece of wood that Yang still considered a tree.

Yang followed Blake’s gaze and chuckled nervously, “I swear little Johnny seen better days! He’s just… feeling dry…”

Blake scoffed, “Yeah, no kidding.”

“Hey! I’m trying!”

“Yes, I know… You’ve been trying for a year and they still look dead to me.”

Yang sighed, “I know, but I’m too lazy to get new plants. Not to mention that I would then have to replace the lawn.”

Blake sighed as well, “I would like to help one day but I got no experience in gardening whatsoever.” Blake flinched again as she felt her phone vibrate in her hand again.

**Ruby: what’s taking u so long??????? u don’t live that far away from my house!!!**

**Blake: I’m almost there, just wait.**

Blake looked up to Yang and apologized, “I’m sorry but your sister’s in a pinch and she needs my help. But I’ll see you later.” And with that she waved Yang bye and continued her walk to Ruby’s house on the cemented path.

Yang tilted her head in curiosity as she watched Blake go. She quietly muttered to herself, “It must be what Weiss was complaining about at work yesterday…”

* * *

A few more minutes passed, and Blake had finally reached Ruby’s house. She looked up from her phone to see Yang’s boss in front of Ruby’s house. She tilted her head in confusion as she heard Weiss knocked harshly at Ruby’s door. The frustration was evident in the angry shouts that came out of her throat.

“RUBY!!! I KNOW YOU ARE IN THERE!! It’s been a few days since I’ve seen you…”

Weiss said the last line tiredly, as her knocks on the door began to lack the strength from earlier. Her posture slouched as her head hung low, as she gazed at her feet as she took a moment to catch her breath. Judging by exhaustion she extruded, Weiss had been going at this for a while. Weiss then straightened herself as began to knock down Ruby’s door.

“RUBY!!! I’m not stupid, where the hell would you be at this time of day?!”

Blake continued to observe from the pavement in front of Ruby’s house, behind the white picket fence. She looked around the house and then caught a glance of Ruby’s eyes as they peeked from behind the blind of her living room. Since Ruby’s house had an entrance that was indented into the house, Weiss didn’t see her backdoor neighbour at all.

Blake’s eyes then met with Ruby’s. Blake looked down to her phone as it vibrated.

**Ruby: FINALLY YOU ARE HEREEEEE**

**Blake: You are totally hiding.**

**Ruby: shuddup**

**Ruby: just tell her i’m not here**

**Blake: Okay…**

“Um… Miss Schnee?” Blake announced; she felt a bit awkward at the formality.

Weiss froze, and slowly turned. She chuckled, “Uh… Just call me Weiss. But it is nice to see you again Blake.”

“It is nice to see you too Weiss… I’m just walking by but… Why are you exactly trying to break down Ruby’s door?”

Weiss was about to throw a retort back until she realized her left hand was still in the air in a fist, ready to knock again. She quickly pulled it down and hid it behind her back.

“… It is none of your business…”

Blake nodded in understanding, as she came to the conclusion to not dig any deeper than that. She then gave an apologetic smile.

“I’m sorry but… um… right now Ruby is not in there at the moment. She is by her sister’s house right now; I was there earlier.”

“Oh.” Weiss deadpanned to herself as she stepped away from Ruby’s door. She walked to Blake and thanked her.

“Thank you, Blake. I suppose I shouldn’t interrupt Ruby when she is having family time.”

With that Weiss walked off and disappeared behind the corner.

Blake waited an extra minute to ensure that Weiss was gone before she walked up to the door and knocked on the door, “Ruby, it’s all clear now.”

The door creaked slowly open, Ruby peered over the door, “Thanks Blake… I’ll definitely repay you but not today…” She said, the last word gradually faded as she closed the door slowly.

But Blake’s hand zapped on to the edge of the door, the bookworm forced the door opened that made Ruby stumble a bit forward. Blake walked inside, “You need to explain yourself now.”

Ruby whined as she closed the door and followed Blake into her living room, “Why…”

Blake sat on the couch in the room, “I know when you have problems Ruby, and right now it appears you are trying to run away from them.”

Ruby muttered under her breath as she plopped herself down on a red beanbag at the opposite corner of the room.

Blake sighed, “Weren’t you the one who told me to face my problems.”

Ruby’s upset façade wore of a bit at the mention of the situation, “We of course I had to… he was being… mean.”

“Ruby, you don’t need to water it down for me. We both know that I was stupid to thinking Adam would change despite us having an abusive relationship.” Blake sighed again and gave Ruby a grateful smile, “I know I’ve said it many times but I’m always thankful that you and Yang never gave up on me and knocked some sense in me about the whole situation. If it weren’t for you two, I don’t know how well I would have been doing now.”

Ruby sighed, “I know… but what does this have to do with Weiss?”

“You are running from your problems like how I was running away from the reality of Adam. And I remember that I promised that I will always be there for you and Yang as you two have always been there for me.”

Blake paused for a moment.

“I won’t pry any further if you don’t want me to but, I’ll stay and listen if you want.”

Ruby grumbled, her arms crossed as she thought for a moment. She sighed as she unfurled her arms and let them come together at her lap so her fingers can fiddle with each other, “Fine…I’ll talk about it…”

Blake perked at Ruby’s choice and watched as Ruby began to fidget.

“I…”

Ruby glanced away from Blake and mumbled harshly to herself.”

“I…”

“You…?” Blake encouraged… At this rate Ruby was never going get to her point.

“I… I like… IlikeWeiss…” Ruby said quietly.

Blake tilted her head, “Pardon?”

“Ugh… IlikeWeiss!”

Blake looked up at the ceiling nonchalantly, “You like ice?”

“Blake!” Ruby drawed her name out, “I know you are doing this on purpose.”

“Just say it clearly…”

“Fine… I like Weiss! Is that clear enough?”

“Well it was clear you liked Weiss from the moment I met her for the first time.”

“Blake!”

“Okay, okay… You know there is no problem with that. We all know that back in preschool you had a crush on me-”

Ruby glared at her best friend, “I thought we all promised not to mention that ever again.”

Ruby then let out an exasperated sigh, “It’s not the fact that she is a girl. You already knew about that part of me… It’s the fact she has a boyfriend.”

“Oh.”

“Yeah _oh.”_ Ruby said sourly.

“Maybe it won-”

“They’ve been together for a year since Valentine’s Day.”

“Oh.” Blake stated, curious to why Ruby knew that specifically. “And I’m guessing that is why you have been avoiding Weiss.”

“Well how can I face her? Sometimes she says things absentmindedly that makes me feel damn fluttery inside.”

“Don’t forget about her feelings.”

“She has feelings?”

“Not the romantic type Ruby.”

The said girl just buried herself more into the beanbag.

“I mean her feelings about your friendship. She doesn’t know you are going through this crisis right now, all that she knows is that you’ve been avoiding her and rejecting her friendship.”

“Oh.” Ruby said this time, as she rethought about her actions.

“But what do I do?” She asked Blake.

“I don’t know. But all you can do now is be friends with her.”

“Ugh…” Ruby groaned once again, as she wrung her fingers together, “This is gonna be torture.”

Blake shrugged, “Right now it seems you only have a crush… maybe it would fade away in time?”

Ruby pulled a pillow beside the beanbag and hugged it, “Hopefully… What do I do now?”

“I guess just put up with the feelings right now. I know it sounds like bad advice, but it is your little crush verses her boyfriend of a year. Right now, I think Weiss is just looking for a friend within you right now.”

Ruby played with the frayed parts of the pillow, “I… I know you’re right, she seemed pretty content with Neptune when I first met him.”

Blake looked at Ruby, “Seemed?”

Ruby stared back quizzically, “What?... Oh, never mind that, it may be just me.”

Blake sighed as she briefly brushed her bangs out of her face, “I’m sorry you have to go through this.”

Ruby looked up to the ceiling before replying, “Don’t be sorry, you’re not the one who formed the crush. And like you said, it might go away…” As she reached the end of her statement, a forlorn expression crossed her face.

“This always ends up happening to me, when will I find someone who’ll actually like me back for once?”

“Hey there, no need to bring your hopes down. You just… haven’t find the right person yet…” Blake thought back the to the situation before she entered the house.

She squinted her eyes suspiciously, “Maybe…”

Ruby looked at her curiously before Blake shook that outlandish thought out of her head, “Don’t mind that, I just mean that there is still hope… don’t get all negative about it yet.”

Ruby hummed before she nodded her head in agreement, “Yes, you’ve got that right! My mum did always say to have a positive outlook! Maybe if I run into the right person this crush will go quicker then.”

Blake chuckled awkwardly, “Maybe? You did pick up a new job, you probably be able to find someone.”

“Yeah!” Ruby giggled, the nerves and worries from earlier shrinking a bit smaller with the support of Blake.

They then stayed in comfortable silence for a moment, as the only sounds that filled the room was the whirls of the fan at the corner near the television. Blake’s eyes trailed to the fan, then was caught by a familiar white bag with a red and black logo, at the base of the fan. She walked over and then picked the bag up, her hand fished inside and picked out a game.

“… Mario Odyssey?”

At the name she promptly sat up, “Yeah, like I mentioned before, I get discounts at my job and this was one of the first games I bought with that discount.”

“Switch topics?”

Ruby, relieved they had finished dealing with the Weiss topic, smiled and picked up the controllers at the front of room, “Switch.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! How are all of you?
> 
> Nothing much was changed in today's chapter, but I hope the minor additions are enough for those who have a clear memory of the chapter :D
> 
> With today's drawing I was really excited to draw Yang (she's my fave character) and her friend Johnny 😂
> 
> Also, I did mention that I'll update everyday but tomorrow is Australia Day and I'm going to be spending that day with my family. I'll see if I can get near my laptop during the day, but even if I do, with the time I'm given I am most likely going to double post on Wednesday.
> 
> So, I hope you all have a nice day and I'll see you when the next chapter is uploaded.


	8. A Commitment

* * *

**_Love starts with a commitment. This lesson gets confused with a ‘commitment’ that is usually made in at a wedding during the vows. However, Ruby Rose describes this moment where she made the commitment that eventually led her crush to ultimately become more than a ‘like’ and into something of ‘adoration’. A commitment of getting to know Weiss Schnee at a much closer and deeper level than the average general knowledge. A commitment that, in the future, did ultimately grow into love…_ **

* * *

Ruby stretched her arms as she walked out of EB games. Despite it being Thursday Late-Night Shopping, she was lucky enough that her shift ended before the influx of customers stormed into the store. She wandered around the mall, as she decided to take the long way to the food court. Her hands attached to the straps of her small backpack; she passed an expensive watch store. She stood in front of the displays in the front of the store, as she marvelled at the shininess and sparkles that radiated from the thousand-dollar accessories.

From her side of the window, she looked past the watches and gawked at the customers of the shop. They wore expensive brand names and showed off their Coach bags. Ruby felt overwhelmed by the customers who would exit out of their store, who ensured to flaunt their possessions at her face as they walked with some sort of flair. She wasn’t the only person who looked into the shop; there were a few others who observed from a distance, as they knew that only those who were extremely well off would go into those stores.

“… Ruby? You are Ruby right?”

She froze at the mention of her name. Her stomach dropped and bubbled in jealousy as she slowly rotated around to see Neptune, who also like the other customers wore anything deemed expensive. She stuttered, “H… Heya… Neptune…”

Neptune gave a friendly wave, oblivious to Ruby’s discomfort. He looked towards the entrance of the store and then to Ruby, “Perfect! You can help me pick out something for Weiss!”

At this suggestion, Ruby felt disheartened, but nonetheless didn’t shoot the idea down, “… Why me?”

Neptune smiled and walked to the entrance of the store, the automatic doors opened, as fifty-dollar perfume wafted outside the store, “Well, you are Weiss best friend. You probably know her better than me!”

Ruby looked down. She looked to inside the store… She was curious to see what it was like in there, but never had to courage to go inside. “… Sure, I’ll help.”

* * *

Ruby stood behind Neptune as he talked to one of the employees about the products. She rubbed her left arm as she tried to distract herself from the distasteful looks she got from the other customers, who turned their noses at her fashion sense compared to theirs.

Ruby felt herself shrink smaller and smaller.

She looked down is discomfort… Why was she doing this?... She is basically torturing herself by helping her crush’s boyfriend…

“Ruby?”

She felt a tap on her shoulder. She raised her head up to meet Neptune’s concerned gaze, “Are you okay? If you have somewhere else to be, I’ll-”

“No!” Ruby exclaimed as she put her hands up in protest. Neptune was being so nice to her, despite the small bit of resentment she felt within her. Ruby started to feel a tad bit guilty. “You asked for my help and I agreed to help, I won’t be rude and leave you… helpless?”

Neptune chuckled at Ruby’s awkwardness, “Weiss was right! You are adorable.”

Ruby halted her train of thought when she heard that, “… She called me adorable?”

Neptune nodded as her gestured Ruby to come and stand by him at the counter, where some luxurious watches were taken off the display for him and Ruby to examine, “Well of course, I believe you are best friends.”

Ruby hesitantly approached the table, and looked at the watches, “… What should I do exactly?”

“Help me choose a watch for Weiss! You see, I’m going to visit her today and I want to give her a small gift.”

“Oh.” Ruby stated as she looked over the watches, “Well… what do you think she’ll like?”

Neptune rubbed the back of his neck in decisiveness, “Usually I would go for the most expensive one since I always do that but, lately she hasn’t been wearing them at all. The last time she wore something from me was a few months ago, just before she moved into the house she is living in right now. That’s why I’m asking you! She always talks about you all the time!”

Ruby perked at this information, “… She does?”

Neptune smiled, “Yeah! Every time we would go to DFO for shopping-”

Ruby exasperatedly sighed to herself at the mention of the store… It had quite a few expensive stores within that mall.

“-she would always go to some items or stores that we are not shopping at and would say… _‘Oh! Ruby would like to wear that’_ or _‘that Ruby loves things from this game!’_ ” He chuckled at the memory, “And because of that, we never really buy that much from the mall.”

Ruby stayed silent, as she let all the information sink in.

Neptune read her silence, “Oh! I’m sorry to misinterpret your friendship with her! I just presumed that if Weiss knew that much about you, you must know a lot about her! And that you are best friends… I’m sorry for presuming.”

Ruby shook her head, “Don’t be sorry, I call her a friend too… It’s just I never realized how much I don’t know about her.”

Neptune sighed, “It’s alright. It should be surprising that her boyfriend of a year is asking for help. If anyone knows about her, it should be me!”

Ruby gave a sad smile, as her mind was trekked through memories as it searched for any moment where Weiss would share something about herself willingly, “Well, then choose what do you think she’ll like.”

After that comment, Neptune was no longer faced towards her as he called out the employee to buy the most expensive watch on the display in front of them. She observed as he paid for the watch and waited for the watch to be wrapped neatly.

Neptune stood awkwardly next to each other as he apologized, “By the way… I’m sorry for dragging you into this… that and… everything else.”

Ruby was about to reassure him until she heard her stomach growl loudly. Neptune looked towards her as she stuttered in embarrassment, “Uh… Sorry, it is just that before you asked me to help, I was going to go to the food court for a late lunch.”

Neptune retrieved the bag and put a hand on Ruby’s shoulder, “Why don’t I buy you a meal, since you helped me and all.”

For Ruby, the hunger talked for her as her sadness washed away, “Free food?! Of course! I’m in!”

* * *

Ruby shifted uncomfortable in the chair of another fancy high-priced restaurant. She would have said something but she has heard that the food was to die for, and so she decided to stay and wait for her order. She quickly moved her thoughts aside and listened to Neptune as he asked her a question.

“You know… if you want to know more about Weiss, why don’t you search up her name?”

Ruby’s discomfort stopped at that as she became curious instead, “Search up?”

Neptune nodded, “I was surprised when she told me that you knew nothing about her when you guys met. I guess that’s why she instantly connected to you… here.” He supplied his phone and faced the screen towards Ruby.

Ruby read the words on the screen, “… Weiss Schnee… second in line for the… Schnee Company! I had some sort of suspicion she was rich but this?! I didn’t know this! Why didn’t she tell me?”

Neptune turned off his phone and shoved it in his pocket, “Well, she doesn’t really care about it, since it’s all going to her older sister. She is also not jealous either, an angel ain’t she?”

Ruby ignored his comment as she repeated out her thoughts, “She has a sister? I didn’t know that…”

Neptune nodded at Ruby’s statement, “Like I said, she is not that concerned about herself being an heiress, as she knows her sister will do a good job. But she does want some control, so that’s why she decided to be the boss of the Schnee Company branch over here. Well, that’s what I presume is the reason she decided to more out in the middle of nowhere.”

Neptune then moved away from the Weiss topic and then continued to babble on about his life. Ruby however was half listening as she watched the food be served in front of her. She robotically picked up a fork twirled the pasta around it, not even bothering to raise the utensil into her mouth as she played with her food.

She watched the pasta twirl endlessly, as she was left to her own thoughts.

Neptune’s voice faded into the background…

…

… She really didn’t know that much about Weiss…

… She should really get to know her…

****

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! I hope you were able to check other cool fics from other creators during the break :D
> 
> Firstly, I know I promised a double update today but I got a pet emergency with my bird so I was very panicky and wasn't able to work on the art and proofreading of the other chapter :(  
> FYI my bird got a diagnosis and is taking medication, crossing fingers that everything will be fine by next week and he's already perking up better earlier
> 
> On a brighter side, instead of an additional update the art in the next chapter is not the standard profile shot of a character so I hope that'll be exciting :3
> 
> So, thank you for reading and I'll see you tomorrow with the next chapter :D


	9. Starting Pet Project Trust

* * *

**_Ruby Rose recounted this memory whenever we were in the backyard of her two-story house. She would connect this memory to an anecdote of love. She taught me that it was at this moment, that she and Weiss Schnee began to trust each other…_ **

* * *

Ruby walked around in circles around her backyard. She looked down to the floor, at all the planks wood that had piled up from some moment of time. She kicked a plank aside, to reveal overgrown but fresh green grass hidden underneath. She walked by the shed; it had gotten spotted with algae and rusty overtime. She squealed in terror when she saw a rat scrambled by.

She ran to the other side of the backyard, her arms spread wide as it was glued to the wooden fence in fear. She watched as the rat looked around in contemplation, before a cat jumped over the fence and killed it with one swoop of its jaws. She watched as the cat then stare at her, the eyes boring into her soul, seemingly plotting some plan against her. Its eyes then morphed into boredom before it jumped back on the fence and prance back to its owner.

Ruby allowed her heart to slow down from the adrenalin as she took a step away from the fence. She sat down on a crate she nearby as she stared at the shed. She tilted her head and lifted her arms in front of her. With her hands she made a horizontal rectangle and closed her right eye. As she analyzed the scene before her, she noticed how centered her shed was. Being placed on the left side of the backyard, all she could notice how sparse the sides beside the shed were… it also did not help that her backyard was very large to begin with.

Through her makeshift frame of her thumbs and index fingers, she imagined the yard clean, with roses bloomed on either side of the shed. Stuck in the daze of her past she moved around the backyard, memories of a sunlit time visible in her hands. She smiled fondly as she remembered the swing set that was once where she stood, how Yang pushed the swing to its limit as she tried to make Ruby fly. She remembered the grass in between her toes when she and her sister chased Zwei, as her father and…

With a sad gasp, her arms fell to the side as she shook her head and lifted her head to survey her surroundings. She fondly looked over the yard, as she came to terms with the mess it has become. Overtime, it became forgotten, with the sake of trying to bear with it.

A light was reinvigorated in her eyes. She began to pull some planks to the side; her brow slowly began to perspire sweat as her weak arms only ever held something as heavy as a game controller.

After her pathetic attempt of her stack of planks, she slumped back against the wall, and gazed upon the number of planks and rubbish that was still scattered across the yard. She sighed… How was she gonna get this done. She flicked through her options.

_Weis-_

  1. She was trying to get over her… and sure they are just _friends,_ but she hadn’t seen her in a week.



_Yang._

Her sister was very strong… but she was at work at the moment.

_Blake._

She is her best friend… Friend or not, Blake detested any work that involved being outside. She could enjoy a walk or two but Ruby would be putting her through torture by making her lift outside.

Ruby sighed…

Weiss it is.

She looked around for the tennis ball in the backyard, and found it hidden under a sheet stained with grass and dirt. As she lifted the ball towards the sky, she threw it to her friend’s backyard as a thought processed through her brain… What if she is at work too?

Ruby cursed at herself… she couldn’t even remember the woman’s timetable after she spent so much time with her.

With no motivation to run, she tried to use her arms to heave herself over the fence but alas… she was too short. Well, she couldn’t even have the strength to pull herself up, all the muscles being in her legs rather than her arms.

She physically flinched as she heard a familiar glass door slide open. She heard the ball fly back over the fence and landed the on to her head, “What is it Ruby?”

Suddenly, all the motivation welled back in her and she sprung herself on to the fence, as used her arms to let her dangle, despite the aches she began to feel from her arms, “WEISS! You’re there?”

Weiss stood there with an eyebrow arched, “Of course I would be. Don’t you remember? I have the days off on Saturdays.”

Ruby guiltily chuckled as she looked in another direction, “Yeah… I just keep forgetting.”

Weiss crossed her arms as her foot tapped on the ground, “What is it? I was in the middle of a fascinating show I discovered a few days ago.”

Ruby’s enthusiasm shone from her face as she smiled triumphantly, “I’ve got a new pet project!”

“Really? What is it?”

Ruby smiled as she threw her head back in a sort of gesture, “I’m gonna fix up my backyard!”

The stiffness in Weiss’ posture disappeared as she looked up at Ruby curiously, “Really?!” She stopped her excitement with an awkward cough to dismiss it.

Ruby did not miss this.

Weiss put her hands behind her back, “How… How exactly?”

“Well…” Ruby began as she tried to position herself so that she was somehow able to use one hand to support her, a leg balanced on the wooden plank that went across the fence. She used her left hand to point in some directions, “Over there I’m planning to-”

“Wait!” Weiss exclaimed, “I have no clue to what you are talking about, I can’t even see the backyard from here. I’m gonna come over to your house.” She said as she turned towards her glass door.

Ruby grinned as she suggested, “Why don’t you just jump over the fence? It’s so much easier that way.”

Weiss blushed as she tugged at her skirt for emphasis, “If I could even do that in the first place, you could see under my skirt.”

Ruby blushed, “Um… How about a ladder?”

Weiss thought for a moment, “Sure I got-”

Ruby interrupted her as she jumped off the fence, “Wait a moment Weiss! I got one in my shed!”

Weiss waited a few minutes, as she headed the shed’s door swing violently open. The other few minutes comprised of Ruby as she huffed from trying to drag the ladder to Weiss position. Weiss smiled to herself, amused at the situation… Ruby is a bit prideful at times, always trying to seemingly to everything… even Weiss knew Ruby would give up at one point.

(Little did she know that Ruby wasn’t being prideful but rather just subconsciously trying to impress her)

“Um…”

Weiss replied with a smirk upon her lips, “Yes Ruby?”

“I… I can’t get the ladder over the fence…”

Weiss giggled, “Ruby, no need to prove yourself. I already know that you don’t exactly have ‘upper body strength’.” She said as she went over to her shed.

On Ruby’s side, she flushed pink with embarrassment but also tilted her head down in guilt… even Weiss knew that little tid bit about her… She had been meaning to learn more about Weiss, but she didn’t know how to bring the topic up.

After a few more moments passed, Ruby began to see the top of Weiss’ head poke above the fence. With one last step, Weiss reached the top of the ladder and maneuvered herself so she was sitting, albiet quiet uncomfortably, on the fence. Weiss looked around, “Now… How do I get down without injuring myself?”

Ruby took in the mess of her backyard. If Weiss were to jump down, it was based on luck whether she would land on a spot with grass or an area with wooden planks, she could accidentally slip on a plank and hit her head.

“How do you do it?” Weiss asked

Ruby pointed at herself, “Me?”

“You know, whenever you jump over the fence to get to my backyard.”

Ruby looked around, “Well, I guess I was so accustomed to my backyard that I just knew where to land. And when jumping over the fence I guess I just learnt to hop from each grass patch.” Ruby jolted at a realization, “What the heck! I even know where to fall whenever something scares me.”

Weiss hummed as she fidgeted on the fence, trying to get an angle to land on a grass spot, “Ruby, do you have some sort of trampoline I could land on? I don’t have your experience and this height is kind of too high to just fall down from.”

Ruby shook her head at the question, as she moved some of the planks near the fence away so the heiress would have a place to land. Weiss gulped as she looked down, “Um…” One of her feet tried to reach the floor but she was still a metre away, “… Maybe I’ll come around to your house…” She concluded as she slowly began to turn on the fence.

“WAIT” Ruby said desperately, her hands in the air to halt her. Ruby blushed as she made the grass spot by the fence wider and held her arms out, “Just jump into my arms instead!”

Weiss grew a tomato red as she held on the fence and shouted, “Why in the world would I do that?!… That is just weird.”

Ruby tilted her head in confusion, “Would it be? We are just friends.”

Weiss looked warily at Ruby’s arms, “… Are you sure you can even catch me? Are you strong enough for that?”

Ruby flashed her a grin, “I’m pretty sure you aren’t as heavy as the ladder… Wait, are you?”

Weiss scoffed at the comment, “Ruby! Never ask about someone’s weight outright!” She the paused and looked warily at Ruby, “Are… are you sure about this?”

Ruby gestured to Weiss to come down with a motion from both of her arms.

Weiss gulped and took a leap of faith.

For a moment, Weiss landed perfectly in Ruby’s arms…

Then it went black.

* * *

“Ump! Stupid dolt…”

Ruby heard some quiet but harsh whispers as she began to regain consciousness.

“Thinking she could do everything…”

Ruby heard a trickle of water being squeezed out of a towel.

“But… Why did I trust her?”

Ruby slowly sat up, her eyes opened to see Weiss seated at the end of the couch by her feet, a water basin in her lap as she muttered to herself. Ruby gave a lopsided smile, “Be-cwase we are best friends!”

Weiss jolted at Ruby’s response as she put the water basin down and pushed Ruby down to lie on the couch, “You stupid dolt! You gained a huge bump from that fall, just rest for a minute.”

Ruby looked around at the surroundings as best she could from her position. She was lying down on one of her couches in her living room, the room having a warm red hue from the curtains that made the light opaque as the sun shone through the window. “W… what happened?”

Weiss sighed as she picked up the small towel she had accidentally dropped in the water, squeezed it and placed it on Ruby’s forehead, “You fell to the ground after you caught me. You are so luck that you cleared the planks from the floor before you decided to catch me, because of that you landed on the grass only.”

Weiss leaned over to the coffee table in front of the couch and picked up the icepack that lay there. She passed it to Ruby, whose hands just grasped it to only fall back down on her stomach.

Weiss sighed, “That fall took a lot out of you, didn’t it?”

Ruby groaned as she began to groan as a headache began to pound in her head. Weiss stood up as she looked around, “Should I close the blinds more?”

Ruby groaned, “No… I just need the icepack.” She said as she lifted her left hand towards Weiss.

The alabaster woman eyed the limb as it weakly shook at trying to stay up. She sighed once more as she stated and moved towards Ruby’s head, “… I’m doing this only once… okay.”

Ruby’s eyes gazed at her confused as she felt Weiss’ cool hands reach under her head and lift it off the pillow that was there. She suddenly felt a weight added to the couch as she saw the pillow being placed on to the table. After a moment, her head was slowly placed down on to Weiss’ warm lap.

“W…Weiss!” Ruby exclaimed, her voice wobbled from the sudden affection.

“Sh… Just relax.” Weiss said, with an odd calming voice.

On the backside of her head she felt a cool sensation, as Weiss held the icepack to the bump that was there, “Just… don’t do something like that next time.”

“Huh?”

“I just… I was just really worried, you are really one of my first real friends, I… just don’t want anything to happen to you.”

Ruby smiled at the sentiment, her heart cracking just a bit as she hit the friendzone once again.

“Alright Weiss… But about the backyard…”

Weiss growled as she flicked Ruby on the head, “You dolt! I’m trying to have a moment here.”

Ruby whimpered, “Weiss!” She whined, “The headache is coming back…”

Weiss halted herself and adjusted the wet towel on Ruby’s forehead so it as covering the spot where she flicked Ruby, “Sorry…”

Ruby closed her eyes for a moment as waited for the ebbing pain in her head to decrease slowly.

A minute passed before Weiss’ voiced filled the room, “Who is that?”

Ruby opened her eyes as she followed Weiss hand, which pointed towards a shelf in the living room. She squinted her eyes to see the frame that Weiss was pointing at, “Oh, that’s my mom.”

Weiss gave a surprised gasp as she looked down towards Ruby, hoping for an explanation.

Ruby sighed as she closed her eyes and thought back to the memories, “She was a great mom. One of my fondest memories of this place is when we were choosing it. I was only six years old, but I remember every detail. I remember she bought this house was because of the big backyard. She wanted a house with a large backyard so me and Yang can have space to run and chase Zwei if we wanted to. When the family went house hunting, she would always check the backyard and just drag all of us out because she wasn’t satisfied with it.”

Ruby paused for a moment, not realizing the fond gaze had upon her as she listened to the brunette’s memories.

“When we found this house, she declared it ours, so we bought it… I remember all the times we would have water balloon fights in the backyard… I remember one day where me and my mom would just lie on the grass in the back as stare up into the clouds, making anything we wanted out of the fluffy things in the sky…”

Ruby went quiet for a moment. Weiss decided to connect the dots, “Was… did she…”

“Yeah, she did… It was an unfortunate car accident on the highway. It happened so suddenly, and we all had our different ways of coping. I guess… overtime, the backyard was neglected because of the memories attached to them. I usually would ever go out there if me and Yang needed to hand the clothes. But lately I’ve been spending time out there much more recently.”

“More recently?”

“Um…” Ruby blushed pink and averted her eyes for a moment, “Let’s just say, I’ve been making more memories with that backyard… I guess my project for that backyard was that I could make it a new place for new memories.”

Weiss took in the silence that the followed after the statement, “I’m… I’m sorry to bring that up.”

Ruby finally opened her eyes and smiled, “It’s okay, that was years ago…I’d like to think I have come to accept it…”

“Like to think you… accepted it?”

Ruby stayed silent after the question; her eyes focused on her hands that were rested on her stomach.

Weiss read the silence and started a different conversation, “So… what are your plans for your backyard… I’d be happy to help.”

Ruby suddenly glowed with ideas, as she excitedly told Weiss what she had in store.

“A patio! So we can sit outside when is rainy or sunny, I think a pergola needs to be over it then. I was thinking that repurposing the wooden planks as well… AND OH! After my bump is gone we can go to Bunnings and get some flowers-”

Weiss halted Ruby in her tracks, “No! It’s autumn right now. Why would you get some flowers now? Wait till later in the year when it is spring. Hmm… Have you chosen the flowers?”

Ruby stared blankly at Weiss reinvigorated expression, “Um… No?”

“Well, I suggest we get some Impateins, they are pretty but kind of low to the ground… Oh! Foxgloves would be pretty! Just don’t get Zwei near them but they can grow pretty tall. Oh, don’t forget about roses! Maybe one with two tones, they look really pretty! My backyard has a whole row of them, and they look beautiful!”

Ruby perked at the small piece of information Weiss gave her, “Your backyard? I guess I was always jumping so I never took notice…”

“Oh! Speaking of my backyard… maybe you can add those Impatiens to some pots, as they originally are flowers made to be put near the windows in those suspended pots.”

As Weiss rambled on, Ruby smiled fondly as she watched Weiss’ eyes light up.

… So Weiss loves flowers…

****

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone!
> 
> Thank you for the wishes for my pet, he's feeling better already! 
> 
> Anyways, concerning this chapter, I actually had a chapter before this in the original fanfic but I didn't feel it matched this story's new form. It didn't have much impact on the story so none of you are really missing anything :D
> 
> Once again, thank you for reading and I'll see you all in the next chapter!


	10. Lovely Fools

* * *

**_Blake Belladonna and Yang Xiao-Long always love to tell me this tale when it is the first of April, the story always containing one lesson; the first sign of love is looking like a fool. That you would laugh with friends, family and special others for the fondness of their laughter. They would always reminisce how stuttery and red Ruby Rose was reacting when they spied on the future couple at the water’s edge…_ **

* * *

Weiss stretched her arms as she rose from her bed. She checked the time… 6am, just early enough for some early morning stretches. She brushed out her naturally long white hair, as she changed into a shirt and yoga pants. She opened her blinds by her window, and the blinds by the balcony that was connected to her room. She smiled in satisfaction as she could see the sun slowly rising above the horizon through the glass doors. After she checked that her room was clean, she slid the glass doors open and was greeted by a chilly morning breeze, which she relished in rather than shiver. She took the yoga mat by the door and laid it on the balcony floor. As her bare feet hit the soft padding, she raised her arms in the air and began to do some yoga poses.

* * *

As she released herself from the triangle pose, she shook her limbs and quickly rolled up the mat. She then quickly trotted inside and tapped off the alarm that rang from her phone… 7am, time for breakfast. She changed her clothes once again, into her business attire of a white pantsuit. She grabbed her glasses and documents off the bedside table and went downstairs to her kitchen.

She placed the glasses and the reports on to the table in the kitchen. Opening the pantry and picked out a floral dress apron and began to cook up eggs benedict for her breakfast, while simultaneously making a light salad on the side.

After she finished brewing her coffee, she took off the apron and began to enjoy her breakfast as she reviewed some reports.

* * *

At 8am she closed her car door shut, as she checked her bag to ensure all the documents and her laptop was all with her. She walked from the employee parking from behind the building to the front. She walked up the stairs and saw three of her security guards arrived earlier today, “Morning boys and Coco.” The two men respectfully greeted her morning as they watched her slide her keycard and looked away when she inputted a passcode. She heard a few cars and a van drive passed to the back of the building. She looked towards the boys, “Can you go inside and begin to switch on the lights, and can you go and help Ren with the deliveries.”

After she giving her orders the men went to work immediately, leaving her and Coco in front of the building.

Weiss took a step inside as Coco followed her in tow. She turned to Coco, “You can start to do your rounds to check if everything is fine with the building.”

Coco grinned as she smiled, “No prob Boss, it is my job. But I might have to warn you, today some of our coworkers may be up to some shenanigans today.”

Weiss tilted her head in confusion, “Shenanigans? Is something happening today?” She asked as she pulled out her phone from bag to answer her own question, “Oh… It’s the first of April.”

Coco nodded, “Yep! And despite this being a bank, we have traditions and celebrating the first is a tradition.” Coco’s grin faltered as she tilted her sunglasses down and asked Weiss seriously, “If you don’t approve boss, I can tell everyo-”

Weiss raised her hand to halt Coco in her words, “I have no problem with you guys pranking each other, just make sure it doesn’t get in the way of your work. Or that the pranks ever have anything to do with me, I have a lot of work to do today so I’m going to be in my office most of the time.”

“Huh, have plans? Usually you rarely work in office.”

Weiss nodded, “I plan to leave early today.”

Coco nodded back in understanding before she walked away and did her rounds. Weiss observed the lobby for a few moments, going behind reception and checking if everything was in place. After she was ensured nothing was tampered with from any possible intruders of the night, she waited for Ren and her other guards to enter through the door.

After a few minutes, the last of her guards walked her in and greeted her a good morning. She gave them orders to do their rounds before she turned to Ren, who walked in holding a clipboard, with two large coolers being wheeled in by the guard she assigned and Velvet.

“Morning Miss Schnee.” Ren greeted as he handed the clipboard to her.

She smiled as she took the clipboard from him. She faced the guard he was with, “Can you get the coolers from yesterday? They should be cleaned and in the storage room of the break room.”

“Yes Boss!” He said as he sped walk to the room.

Weiss turned towards Ren and signed the clipboard. She passed it back to him, “Thanks for supplying the food as always. Everyday nonetheless!”

Ren chuckled as he checked the signature, “For these months you have been our most loyal customer, Nora and I are happy to serve.” He turned towards the coolers on the hand trolley as Velvet pulled them off the equipment, “Are you sure you don’t want me to take it up? Those coolers get really heavy when there’s food in there.”

Weiss shook her head as one of her guard came walking from the direction of the break room, easily carrying the two coolers by the handles on either hand. She took the empty coolers and placed them back on the hand trolley, “It is alright, some of the muscle around here need a bit of exercise.”

She waved off Ren as he exited the building. She turned the receptionist table and typed a code under the desk to lock the front doors. She looked back to Velvet, “Now, what brings you early to work today? Everyone else arrive at 9am when the bank opens.”

Velvet smiled as she adjusted the straps of her bag, “I decided to get ahead of the game.”

Weiss squinted at Velvet curiously before she sighed… it probably had something to do with the day, “Okay… Just go and unpack in the locker room, I’ll be in the break room.

* * *

Weiss opened the second cooler as she pulled out the containers of pasta, rice and other parts of food out. She opened the containers and deposited the contents into the lunch bar, ensuring that the labels matched the food. She heard the door open and a person humming as they entered the room. She put the containers down and addressed the person, “… Hello again Velvet.”

The woman gave a smile as she walked towards the small kitchen that was implemented near the lunch bar in the break room, “Hi Boss, just getting ready my prank.”

Velvet picked out an opened box of Oreos from the cupboard. Weiss moved so she was standing beside Velvet, “Aren’t those Coco’s? Everyone knows not to touch them.”

The brunette smiled as she took out a cookie and replaced the cream filling with toothpaste, “Last year, Coco filled my locker with rubber carrots so when I opened them, all these carrots smacked me in the face and squeaked as they hit the floor or when I accidentally stepped on them. The nickname Squeakers hasn’t died yet.”

“Ah.” Weiss said as left Velvet to her task as she finished stacking up the lunch bar.

* * *

Weiss walked into the break room, as she finally left her office just for lunch. She picked out a plastic plate from the pile and began to fill it with pasta.

“Salutations Boss!” Chirped a voice from beside her.

Weiss greeted, “Hello Penny, how’s the day been?”

She giggled, “Quite interesting boss! In fact, you arrive just in time!” She pointed at the door Weiss had just walked through.

At the door, there was Sun, who was applying cling wrap across the top half of the entrance, “Ah finished!” He said to himself as he ducked and looked for someone.

He immediately got out of the way as Scarlet ducked and walked into the room, “She’s almost here, I saw her turn around the corner!”

Sun smiled evilly as he stepped back and watch everything unfold.

Yang’s voice could be heard while she was skipping in the hall as she chanted a ‘break song’. However, this was broken when her face ran into the cling wrap, her body, except her head, flung forward before she landed with her back on the ground. She growled as she got up and pulled the plastic from her face, “SUN this has your name written all over it!” She marched up to him, staring him down, “I could’ve lost an arm back there!”

They stared at each other in silence before they erupted into laughter, the whole room chuckling with them.

Weiss smiled as she giggled into her fork of pasta.

* * *

Weiss now sat in the middle of the park, on a table under the shade of a tree. Knowing that people came rarely when the sun was setting, she let her posture slouch a bit.

She flicked through the pages of the worn and old book. It was a thin composition book, decorated with musical notes in the most elegant way possible. She landed on the first song printed and stuck to the pages, with notes scribbled all over it. She rubbed her throat as she started a vocal exercise, “D-do-do… r-re”

Her voice wobbled, afraid of letting go. She stopped and gulped, before she hesitantly tried again…

“D-do… R-re… Faa… So, La Ti Doe!” She exclaimed as her voice got louder and confident. Before she could self-evaluate her own voice, she heard a familiar sound out from behind her.

“Weiss? Were you singing?”

Weiss flinched at the question and slammed her book close, “No you dolt! I can’t sing!”

Ruby tilted her head in confusion but decided no to pursue her curiosity.

Weiss stuffed the book into her bag, as she tried to change the topic, “W… what are you doing here anyway? Are you stalking me again?”

Ruby chuckled as she walked towards Weiss and sat beside her, “I don’t know, Yang just told me to meet her here for some reason.”

“Okay…” Weiss warily stated as they sat in comfortable silence, listening to the wildlife of the night slowly wake up as the sun began to slowly settle.

However, as the sun touched the line of the land, Ruby stood up lifted her arm towards Weiss, “Come on! You’ll really like this!”

Weiss looked up to Ruby, at the hand that was offered to her. She placed the bag from the seat on to the table and smiled as she took Ruby’s hand.

Ruby returned the smile and tugged towards the lake in the middle of the park. She and Weiss stood side by side the water’s edge.

“… Ahem.”

Ruby turned questionably to Weiss who chirped at that moment. Weiss nudged her own head towards their still joined hands.

Ruby blushed at the sudden realisation and pulled her hand away from Weiss. The same hand went to the back of her neck as she apologized, “Ahaha…. Whoops! Sorry about that…. But look!”

Ruby pointed towards the horizon.

Weiss turned away from the brunette, as her eyes widened at the beautiful sight in front of her. The sun has moved considerably under the horizon and the whole world was filled with orange and pink hues, which reflected off the lake in the most beautiful way possible.

“I… I… It’s beautiful. I never noticed it ever since I came here. I was always glued to my book or work I bring with me.”

Ruby nodded accordingly, “Yeah, it’s kinda sad that a lot of people in this neighbourhood always miss the sunset over here. Despite this place being kinda smaller than average, it still can be pretty.”

Weiss, without turning to Ruby inquired, “What about when we properly talked the first time? You didn’t notice the sunset either.”

Ruby thought out loud, “Hm… That was because I was listening to you-”

Ruby halted herself before she made a huge slip up, “C… Cause you kept laughing for half of the time at my stories that I couldn’t even speak cause you were cutting me off!” She exclaimed.

Weiss took one good look at Ruby and laughed, “I guess we were both engrossed in our conversation-”

But Weiss was cut off as she was shoved into the lake.

“APRIL FOOLS WEISS!” Yang cheered as she jumped around, with Blake face palming in the background.

Ruby looked in between Yang and Weiss before she settled her glare at her sister, “Yang! That is just plain rude!”

Weiss grumbled as she sat up in the lake, “Why in the world would you do that to me! I didn’t even call any of you here!”

Yang shrugged, “I was originally going to do that to Ruby cause she did it to me last year but, I saw you here and I didn’t get to prank you at work since, you know, you _are_ my boss… so… I was like ‘why the hell not’ and pranked you instead.”

Weiss rolled her eyes as she lifted her arms to anyone, “Can someone help me?”

Ruby obliged as she grabbed Weiss’ hands, which in turn pulled her into the water.

“Weiss! You are so lucky I stopped bringing my 3Ds outside because of that Zwei incident!”

The two women looked towards each other and burst into giggles.

Weiss then whispered into Ruby’s ear.

“Ooooh~ What are you two talking about?” Yang asked.

The both of them took both of Yang’s legs and pulled her into the water. Yang growled at them before she initiated a water fight between them.

“Blake! Join us!”

Blake smiled as she observed the scene… Out of all people she never expected Weiss out of all people to join in at the fight. She put her book down.

“Sure, why not.”

****

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! Thanks for taking the time to read today :D
> 
> If any of you are wondering about my art, little fact most of it aren't actually in my art style. These are mostly doodles I give myself an hour or two to finish. Drawing everyday can get exhausting if I spend too much time on every single piece.
> 
> Also sorry for everyone who was following my Tumblr but apparent some of the posts' links weren't working and all the formatting was wrong, but I'm currently fixing them so don't worry :D
> 
> Anyways you all have a lovely day or night and I'll see you in the next chapter!


	11. Looking Past the Surface

* * *

**_’Do not judge a book by its cover’ is definitely something that Weiss Schnee believed, however she taught me this lesson in another way; that looking past the surface, there is something to love. She refers to this story when she mentions her lesson, how Ruby Rose may just seem like a very obsessed nerd at first but looking past that, she was able to find the whole quirk of Ruby’s quite adorable. And that Ruby Rose did that as well, as she too ultimately looked passed her ‘rich status’ and only was curious about herself…_ **

* * *

Weiss stretched her arms, rising from her bed as she does every morning. She did her daily routine, this time without the pressure of her work schedule. Sliding the balcony door open, she reached for the yoga mat. After she placed the mat on the floor, she walked towards the concrete railing of the balcony and gazed upon the sun peeking from underneath the horizon. Leaning towards the edge she rested on the concrete, observing the neighbourhood wake up.

Her eyes widened as she saw a certain brunette huddled on her roof in a red blanket.

In a loud questioning voice, “Ruby?”

Ruby got startled for a moment as she heard her name and began to slowly slide off the roof from her instability. “… aaaAAAAAAHHH!”

Weiss also began to panic as she started freaking out on the balcony, “Ruby!!!!” She yelled as she ran down her stairs.

* * *

Ruby huffed loudly as she managed to get herself back on the roof, but this time she had moved on to a less steep part of the roof. She sighed as she curled more into her blanket and looked down to the side to her backyard, where Weiss had used her ladder to get over the fence and dropped her step ladder Ruby’s side to step down safely.

Weiss had walked over to the side of the two-story house and pushed any stray planks that haven’t been added to the pile beside the shed. She cupped her hands around her mouth and called out to Ruby, “Are you okay?!”

Ruby sighed as she sarcastically said, “I seem fine, and it’s not like I almost fell off the roof of my two-story house.”

Weiss groaned as she yelled to Ruby, “Is there any way I can get up there?”

Ruby stayed silent for a moment before she responded, “There is an exit through the attic, there should be an entrance near the gaming room… The backyard door should be unlocked.”

Weiss looked towards the door and opened the door. She walked past the kitchen where Ruby’s laptop was left abandoned on the counter. She walked to the divide between the living room and kitchen, and smiled at the scene. Despite her being inside the brunette’s house quite a few times, the place looked absolutely homey when the sun was just beginning to rise. She then looked towards the stairs… the part of the house she’s never been in before.

She slowly walked up the stairs, as it creaked underneath each step. When she reached the second floor, she decided to take in the surroundings and figure out where the gaming room was. She looked to both sides of the hallway, deciding which side to check first. Opting for her left side, she walked to the end of the hallway and saw that the door at the end was the bathroom, as the door was left ajar. She quickly peeked into the other room on the side, near the bathroom and saw it to be a dusty storeroom. Not wanting to pry any further, she closed the door quietly and decided to the check the other two rooms on the right side of the hallway. As she walked to the end, she checked the room on the side, to only discover it was Ruby’s room. Once she saw the woman’s unmade bed she immediately shut the door. She looked at the last room and opened it just to be sure. And she was sure it was the gaming room.

She gaped in awe at the amount of figurines all placed neatly on the shelf, and the gaming monitors that stood on the table. She eyed mics and camera that was positioned on the table facing the red lined and black gamer chair… what does Ruby do exactly?

She shook the thought out of her head and took a step out of the room. She looked up to the ceiling to see a square. Noticing the small stepladder that was folded to the side near the wall, she grabbed it. She opened it up and stepped to grab the small handle by the square. Pulling it down, she quickly moved to the side as she watched the steps of the ladder unfurl and reveal the entrance to the attic. Weiss placed the stepladder to the side of the wall and climbed up, making sure to close the latch when she reached the top.

Now at the top of the attic, the wood seemed different and newer than the infrastructure of the house itself but seemed left forgotten longer than anything else. She gazed upon the boxes that were stored in the room, all dustier than that storeroom she stumbled upon. She then saw the small table that was attached to the wall. It was short and clearly made for children. She let her hands run upon the dried paint before she noticed that it acted as a step to the slanted door on the roof. Taking one last look at the attic before her, she pushed the door open, as she felt the weight of the tiles on the door.

Now outside on the roof, she closed the door and analyzed it in awe… she would have to ask Ruby about this.

She then stood up slowly on the tiles, as she wobbled to Ruby who sat comfortably on the least slanted side of the roof, “R-ruby!”

Ruby turned around to see Weiss staggering on the tiles, trying to keep upright, “Weiss, just crawl.”

Weiss audibly groaned as she dropped onto all fours and crawled towards her backdoor neighbour and sat beside her, “You do know this is exceedingly dangerous. My parents would forbid this.”

Ruby shrugged as she kept her face away from her, “Well, you are your own person now.”

“That’s not exactly why though.” She said as she hoped Ruby would turn to her in curiosity. Ruby did not budge.

Weiss sighed as she tapped on Ruby’s cheek to get her attention, “Hey… I’m sorry for making you almost fall earlier… I’m also immensely sorry for unintentionally scaring you like that… Ruby?”

Ruby waited for a moment before she faced her with a shrug, “Eh, all is forgiven, it’s not the first time I even fell off the roof.”

Weiss arched an eyebrow, as her voice grew angry in tone, “Then why did you make such a big deal out of it!”

Ruby huddled herself in the blanket, is it shook from her laughter.

Weiss grumbled at her reaction, then properly analysed the statement, “Not the first time? Be more careful out here you idiot!”

Ruby’s laugh grew louder, as Weiss heard muffled words from Ruby in between her laughs;

“Heheheh… Your face… Hahaha… was sooooo funny!”

Weiss’ face coloured in embarrassment as she flicked Ruby on what seemed like an arm through the blanket, “You… insufferable dolt!”

Ruby poked her head out as her laughs subsided while she wiped the tears of laughter going down her face.

Weiss then looked to where they were and arched an eyebrow towards Ruby, “Now why exactly are you up here today? I usually see nobody almost toppling over the side of this house when I do my stretches.”

Ruby looked up before she heaved out a loud sigh, changing the atmosphere between them. She looked to the sunrise as she pulled her legs towards her chest, “I came up here because I was sad.”

Weiss stayed silent, as she scooted over to Ruby and leaned gently on her arm for support.

Ruby sighed, “Well, I haven’t been here in a long time. The last time I was up here, me and my mom had plans to turn this part of the roof flat, to make some sort of balcony up here so we can gaze upon the stars… well, a black sky really. You know she was the one who made the door and the attic.”

Weiss turned to Ruby, “I did have a question about the attic as there rarely are houses with attics in this country. But the door was really well made, it was somehow made in a way where the rain water running down the tiles doesn’t seep inside to the attic.”

“Yeah, she was a pretty cool mom, she made that attic because that was the next closest thing that me and Yang would have to a tree house since we didn’t have a tree. I guess she made it so we can ultimately stop whining about that.” Ruby explained as she chuckled. Her voice reverted to one of somber as she remembered, “Me and Yang stopped coming up there when… I was about 8 years old. This is actually the first time I’ve been up here in a while.”

“Ah… do you want to talk about it or something?”

Ruby looked towards Weiss, before she stuffed her face in her blanket, “Uh… just don’t laugh, okay…”

Weiss frowned at Ruby’s assumption, “Of course I would not, I’m not that cold hearted.”

Ruby muttered why quietly.

“Um… I can’t hear you, if you don’t really want t-”

“IT’S CAUSE OF A GAME!”

Weiss looked at Ruby bewildered, “A… a game?”

Ruby sniffled, “Yeah, I just finished playing ‘To the Moon’ and the ending was so… EMOTIONAL!”

Weiss gaped as she stated to get a grasp of it, “So you’re telling me that you risked your life of almost falling off the building… just because of a emotional game you were playing?”

Ruby shouted back at Weiss a retort, “’TO THE MOON’ IS A GREAT GAME, OKAY! The plot twists and the ending of the game is damn emotional and… THIS SUNRISE REMINDED HOW THE SUN ROSE IN THE ENDING!!”

Weiss stayed silent over shock before she started chuckling.

“H… hey, you said you wouldn’t laugh.”

Weiss leaned into Ruby as she looked up to the girl.

Ruby blushed at the contact.

“You dork! Please don’t ever change.”

Ruby blushed at the statement as she waited for Weiss to calm down. They both sat together as they watched the sun rise.

Ruby felt a shiver to her side as she felt the morning breeze brush up against them.

She took a deep breath in and pulled Weiss closer beside her and draped the blanket over the woman’s shoulders as well. She gave a grin towards Weiss, “Don’t want you freezing out here.”

Weiss’ cheeks was dusted with a light pink shade, “… Thank you.”

They watched as the birds began to fly for the morning breakfast as the sun finally lifted itself over the horizon. The two huddled together under a blanket as they watched their world slowly wake up.

Ruby relished in the sweet moment she was having with Weiss… it was the closest thing to romantic she would ever get with the heiress. Then a thought ran through her head. Ruby shuffled slightly, wondering how to bring up the question.

Weiss felt Ruby fidget beside her, “Is there something wrong?”

Ruby cleared her throat as she nervously asked, “So… despite all these months of knowing you… I actually know less about you then you know about me.”

Ruby watched as Weiss looked towards the sky in thought, “Well, that might be my fault, I just… never really had a friend who wanted to talk about me.”

Ruby’s eyes widened, “Really? What were your people like back at your old home?”

Weiss grimaced as she thought back to her so called ‘friends’, “I wouldn’t consider them friends… A lot of them would constantly talk about themselves, I do not even understand how someone like Neptune are friends with them. All they would do is flaunt their riches and status.”

“Huh… I forgot you are rich.”

Weiss gave a small smile as she nudged Ruby in the arm, “And that is what I like about you.”

Ruby flushed even harder than before as she asked a question in a higher pitch than usual to get the topic off of her, “So then…” She cleared her throat again to cover up her sudden change in pitch, “Tell me something.”

Weiss looked towards her garden for a moment, “Well… I like gardening.”

Ruby smiled at that, “You should talk to Yang about that then! Her garden absolutely looks dead and maybe you can paint the plants alive again!”

Weiss brows furrowed, “That’s odd, Yang’s always bragging about beautiful her garden is.”

“If you see it, you probably think you walked into a cemetery.”

Weiss giggled as she looked up in thought for another fact, “… I’ve always wanted a cat for a pet.”

Ruby felt light as she learnt more about Weiss, “That’s awesome!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey people! Here back with another chapter :D
> 
> Nothing much with this chapter, but I definitely had a lot of fun creating the art with this chapter! All this people practice is making me really understand how to draw people in terms of the limbs, especially creating my own style around it :D
> 
> Oh! I finally watched The Haunting of Bly Manor! I put it off for so long since I'm a scaredy cat, I even watched Haunting of Hill House with someone to tell me when the jumpscares would come 😅But I love watching these shows for the story and plot twists! But GOD BLY MANOR IS GAY AND IM STILL CRYING :(((((((((((
> 
> Well, before I go back to my hidey hole and cry while reading Bly Manor fics I'll see you all tomorrow with the next chapter!


	12. A Pokémon of Moments

* * *

_**Yang Xiao-Long would constantly remind me that love is full of the little but heartfelt moments that will always stay, despite how odd the sentiment would be. She would always remark that despite how insulted Weiss Schnee may have felt at that moment, once she understood it, that plushie had a permanent place on her desk at her office…** _

* * *

Ruby squealed while she held tightly onto Yang’s waist, as she tried to use her feet as an anchor to stop Yang from moving, “NOOOoooooooo! Yang! Please don’t do that! The dust and spiders would eat them!”

Yang huffed as she slowly dragged her sister through the cramped laundry, “It’ll be fine! I’ll wrap it up securely in a rubbish bag so none of those things can reach them.”

“NOOOooooo! They are not rubbish!”

Yang’s eyes were squinted while she managed to make it to the door and swung it open, as she jumped outside and turned around dramatically. This caused Ruby to let go and trip over the ledge of the doorway. Yang opened the box and stuck her hand in it and reached for a Pikachu plushie, “Come on Ruby! These plushies have been taking up space in the laundry! It has been hard to even do the laundry in there without them accidentally falling into Bessie! If you did the washing, then I’m pretty sure I won’t be the one annoyed.”

Ruby eyed the box manically as she lunged for them.

Yang quickly moved her arms and raised her arms a bit higher, “You could put it in your spare room, but if we add another box, that metropolis of boxes is gonna topple over us. And there is no way I’m gonna let you keep these in the living room and make a mess.”

Ruby lunged again, as Yang moved her arms in the opposite direction, “Or… you could put it in… the attic you know. It’s better than the shed. You just have to move the boxes-”

“NO!” Ruby yelled, as she stood her ground and glared at Yang’s suggestion, “No. No, no, no.”

Yang gave Ruby an encouraging look, “You know, you can send those boxes to Dad… he’s got a lot of space in his house since he’s always travelling-”

Ruby gave Yang a stern look, “I said NO. Those boxes stay here.”

Yang sighed as she turned slightly towards the shed, “Whelp, I guess Pikachu and friends are going into the shed~”

“NOT PIKACHU!!!” Ruby screamed as she leapt into the air, trying to match her sister’s height as she reached for the box that was now held over the older sister’s head.

Yang panicked in the moment and jumped, to avoid her sister who tried to pummel her into the ground. As she jumped, she felt her grip go loose and she watched in comedic horror as she watched the box get slingshot into the air, as it made its way over too Weiss’ garden.

As Ruby and Yang landed on the ground, which was now cleared of the wooden planks, they looked through the spaces between the wooden fence. Weiss was watering her roses when she let out a resounding “OW”, when the box of plushies landed and hit her head, before it fell and spilled its contents onto the concrete floor.

“WHAT IN THE WORLD!” Weiss screamed to herself as she went into the shed and began to drag her ladder out.

Yang and Ruby watched in fear as her boots loudly echoed in anger through the atmosphere. Once she dragged the ladder to the fence, they shivered as they saw Weiss harshly stick her hand into the skin of the plushies as she picked them off the ground one by one and put them into box.

Ruby huddled in fear with her sister as her voice wobbled quietly, “S… She’s murdering them!”

Yang nodded in agreement as they took a step back in fear. They turned around as they commentated to each other, “We disturbed her while she was painting the flowers! The Ice Queen is gonna behead us!”

“I’m not going to behead anyone.”

Yang and Ruby flinched as they turned back to the fence. Weiss had climbed the ladder her upper torso was visible. She shot them a confused look as she leaned her left arm of the box that miraculously balanced on the fence.

“And why in the world would I paint my flowers? That is just plain abuse to the plants.”

Yang shrugged as she reasoned, “Well, how else do you keep those flowers pretty and alive? Paint can be the makeup of plants. Pretty on the outside… but dead in the inside.”

Weiss rolled her eyes, “Unlike some other people I know, my flowers are alive and happy, instead of being standing corpses.”

Yang dramatically was taken aback as she put her hand to her chest, “Are you insulting Johnny! He is making a recovery.”

Ruby giggled beside Yang, “A _very_ slow recovery.”

Yang punched Ruby playfully on the shoulder, as she pouted, “You’re meant to be on my side.”

Weiss smirked, “Who said I was talking about your plants? Unless… they are standing corpses.”

Ruby ‘oh’ in the background as Yang grinned and pulled the sleeves of her jacket up her shoulder, “Oh, is this turning into a battle? Cause I’m so gonna pummel-”

But Yang was interrupted by a loud obnoxious ringtone that blared from her pocket. She quickly puller her phone out and checked the screen.

Yang suddenly got jumpy as she looked towards Weiss, “Uh, ah… Sorry but this is really important and I got to take this, I’ll come back, BYYYEEEeeeeee…” She left with a grin as she ran into the house and locked the laundry door to give herself privacy from her sister’s prying ears.

Ruby questioningly looked towards the door, “Well… I’m now stuck in my backyard.” She turned back to Weiss and sighed, “You do know that Yang really needs help with that garden of hers.”

Weiss shrugged, “I offered but she’s too stubborn to get any help from me… But anyways,” Weiss started as she opened the box and picked out a random Pokémon plushie, “Did this accumulate overtime? Because it’s quite a few toys in one box.”

Ruby shrugged as she gestured Weiss to drop the box down to her, “Eh, I only bought some of those, a lot of my subscribers love to send me these plushies.”

Weiss tilted her head as she dropped the box down to Ruby, “Subscribers?”

Ruby caught it and looked up to Weiss, “Oh, that is the one thing I never really mention… I kinda own a… channel?”

Weiss’ eyes widened, “Really? I only discovered YouTube this year, how man-”

“WAIT! You’re telling me… that you never knew about YouTube until now? What are you? An old lady?”

Weiss flushed red in anger and embarrassment as she crossed her arms, “Just so you know, my white hair is natural! And you know my parents restricted my access to it since it was a ‘juvenile’ thing apparently.”

Ruby paused for a moment before her memory flashed back to the roof, “Oh, I remember you complaining about that.”

“And I’m still a bit angry about it, there are so many cat videos there and I really could have needed that when I was whiny about getting a cat… Gosh I was so bratty then.”

Ruby shrugged as she checked to see if the plushies were all in there.

“But how many subscribers?”

“Oh ‘Red Like Roses’ is like at around… 700,000… not a big deal you know. It’s definitely not small but it’s not large enough that I haven’t even went or been invited to conventions, I’m just too poor for that.”

“700,000?! That is a huge accomplishment Ruby, you are so close to a million!”

Ruby smiled brightly back at her, “… Yeah that is right, I’m almost there!”

Ruby looked and gasped, “Uh… I think one is missing! It’s Piplup.”

Weiss turned around to check, and from her height, she had saw that one had rolled behind the pots. She went and retrieved it, “Here’s your… blue penguin.” She added as she dropped the plushie from the fence into the open box, “What are these from anyways? All I see are weird looking animals.”

A large gasp came out of Ruby as she was taken aback by Weiss’ blunt question. She was clearly offended. “Are. You. Telling. Me… that you don’t know what this is?????”

Weiss knitted her eyebrows together as she nodded slowly, afraid what speaking may do to Ruby.

An even larger and louder gasp was made by Ruby as she took a deep breath of air in and rushed, “These cute creatures are from POKÉMON of course! There was originally 151 Pokémon but, now that there are more games and different regions, there are definitely a whole lot more than that. Oddly enough my favourite Pokémon games are the Pokémon Mystery Dungeon series as I just love being a Pokémon in the game.

And I always get Charmander but I don’t think I’m a Charmander as the options are limited for that game… But if I were to name our friends I guess Blake would be a Liepard… Yang would be a Goodra! And you… wow, I actually never thought one for you… You’d… be… a… M… Milotic!”

Weiss tilted her head, “A… Milotic? What is that?”

“A water type pokemon. It kinda looks like a snake but elegant.”

Weiss arched an eyebrow at ‘snake’, “Why exactly am I this Pokémon?”

Ruby stuttered for an answer, “Ah… um… Anyways, I actually got a pre-evolution plushie for this Pokémon in the box… It’s called Feebas.” She said as she avoided the question.

“Oh, that sounds kinda cute- WHAT IN THE WORLD IS THAT!!! Are you insulting me… You… you DORK!” Weiss shouted as she stomped down the ladder and slid her glass door shut behind her.

“Wow, that must’ve really offended her cause she looked pissed.”

Ruby heard a voice behind her as Yang, who came during the last part of the conversation, walked up from behind.

Ruby sighed as she and Yang stood and stared at the fence, “But… this is only Feebas, not Milotic… Milotic only evolves from this…”

Yang peered into the brown and blue fish pushie that was covered in beige spots, “Well with a Pokémon like that of course she would be offended if you compared her to that! You basically called her ugly.”

“YANG!”

“Well, that is what princess is probably thinking right now.”

“Ugh!”

“But I don’t get it, why would compare her to a Milotic? If Feebas looks like this why Milotic.”

Ruby sighed as she tried to rest her elbow on her shoulder, but Yang was too tall. She grumbled as she returned her hand back to the box, “Poor, poor sister… who does not know the wonders of the Pokémon universe… Feebas is the ugly duckling story of the Pokémon world.”

“So… you are calling her ugly.”

“I KNOW SHE IS NOT UGLY! YOU JUST WANT ME TO ADMIT I FIND HER BEAUTIFUL!”

Yang smirked as she wiggled her eyebrows at Ruby’s response.

Ruby blushed as she groaned, “That’s not the point, I guess you could say that I can use Milotic’s evolution as a metaphor for our relationship. Started off ugly as she was very rude and uptight, and we fought in our first meeting… hence Feebas.” Ruby stated as she put the box down and gave Yang Feebas to hold for a moment. She pulled out her phone and went to Google Images, “And, as we got to know each other more and became friends… I guess our relationship bloomed into something beautiful.” She showed Yang the image of Milotic.

“Oh.” Yang stated as she stared at the image, “That is one pretty Pokémon.”

Ruby looked fondly at the picture, “Yeah.”

The cogs in Yang’s head began to whirl as she formed a smirk upon her lips, “As beautiful as that metaphor is for your ‘friendship,’ you were only intending to compliment her in the first place… eh?”

Ruby still red stuttered, “N… no!”

“You called _her_ a Mioltic, not your friendship when you were talking to her. Admit it, you were only calling her beautiful in nerd speak~”

Ruby grumbled as she looked away, but not deny the claim.

Yang chuckled as she picked up the box as Ruby squealed.

“Ruby, please be reasonable.”

Ruby looked at her feet then the box, “Okay… Just make sure it is sealed tight.”

Yang finally smiled at Ruby’s decision as she put the box on her hip as she opened it to put Feebas back inside.

“Wait!”

Yang looked at Ruby questioningly.

“I… I wanna keep that one in my room.”

Yang chuckle again and passed Ruby the plushie, “You are meant to get over her.”

Ruby puffed her cheeks, “I am.”

Yang sighed as she unlocked the shed and pulled out a clean garbage bag to tightly close up around the box. She double knotted before she stored it securely inside, “Yeah, but all that talk makes it seem like you are just falling for her even more.”

Ruby hesitated as she answered, “I’m… I’m not. Blake already warned me.”

Yang tight lipped headed towards the laundry door beside her sister, “Sure… If you say so.”

They stayed silent for a moment as they headed back inside.

Then Ruby giggled.

“What’s so funny sis?”

“If that was me talking in nerd speak, you wanna know what Goodra is?”

Ruby shoved her phone to Yang’s face.

“Awe… that looks cute… WAIT! Is that all goo? Yuck! Why that Pokémon?!”

“You do know you drool a lot in your sleep, right?”

“I do not!”

“Well, me and dad measured it in a cup once.”

“Gross!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Good morning and evening everyone! I hope you all are having a good day!
> 
> As a matter of this chapter, nothing much has been edited. Personally I proofreading this chapter and drawing the art purely for the fact it has Pokémon. I love the franchise! But I'm definitely have been frustrated with current games, but I've been in the thing for so long I can't seem to let it go.
> 
> Oh well, enough about me ranting about my habits like Isabelle in ac, I'll see you all tomorrow in the next chapter :3


	13. Despite What Some May Say

* * *

_**One important lesson that Weiss Schnee told me was that despite what some may say, love would not care for whoever you are. She paired this lesson with her story with Ruby Rose; that despite what Ruby revealed, she did not think anything different than her and that the day ended quite normally and not as dramatic as one would have expected…** _

* * *

“So, hey guys, welcome to the stream! Today I’ll be playing _Hidden Agenda_! And I know it’s a game that is best played with others but since I have no friends, I’ll be playing solo today.”

Ruby waited 20 seconds as she made sure her sound and audio were running. She chuckled as she saw the chat blow up with people comforting her and claiming their rights as her friends.

She chuckled, “Yeah, I know, I know, I’ve got you guys too! You all are my friends as well… Whoa, slow down there, I can barely keep up with the amount of you in the chat.”

* * *

Weiss stretched her arms after she placed the tray of lasagna on the stove to cool down a bit. Resting her hands on her hips, she analyzed her creation, “Mmmm, smells good! It came out great!” She said to herself.

As she took of her oven mittens, she tilted her head at the large amount of food, “Hmm… I can’t finish all of that before it goes bad.”

Weiss tapped her chin a few minutes before she smiled. She went to her pantry and began to pull out plastic containers on the lowest shelf, “I guess it’s time I pay everyone a visit.”

* * *

She carefully stepped into Yang’s driveway, her eyes bulging at all the dead trees that sat in front of the house and at the yellowing grass. As she threw concerned gaze towards the other plants that were too dead to be identifiable, she rang the doorbell on the elder sister’s door.

“Hello- Ice Queen? What are you doing here?” Yang said in surprised as she leaned against the doorway with her arms crossed.

Weiss stuck her hand into the bag hung on her arm and pulled out a container with lasagna, “I come bearing gifts.”

Yang’s eyes lit up as she grabbed the container, “Don’t mind if I do!” She pulled the lid off and smelt the aroma, “Wow! This smells amazing! Gardening and cooking!? You would make a great wife, Neptune must be lucky!”

Weiss nodded at the compliment, deciding to ignore the wife comment, “Well, Neptune wouldn’t know as he always insists going out whenever we eat or have one of his many maids make us lunch. I understand that he doesn’t want me to ‘overwork myself’ curtsy of my parents but, I wish he let me show my cooking skills.”

Yang closed the container and set it on a small table near the door, “Whoa, slow down Ice Princess. If you came here to rant let us sit down first.”

Weiss abruptly shook her head, “Excuse me for going off topic, but I don’t need to rant about anything. I just came here to give lasagna and to ask if you could also pass this container to Blake.”

Weiss handed Yang another warm container of food with a post-it note that says: ‘BLAKE – Also stay away Yang’.

Yang raised an eyebrow, “Okay…”

Weiss continued, “I don’t know where she lives so can you give this to her?”

“Sure, no problem. And if you plan on making this a habit, you may as well ask for her address.”

Weiss pursed her lips at the odd comment but nonetheless moved on to her next question, “I also meant to give some to Ruby but when I rung on her doorbell, she didn’t answer. I even threw something at her window and no response… Is she somewhere else today?”

Yang paused for a moment and checked the time, “Ah, I see why… Right now, Ruby is at home… You know what?” Yang started as she picked her keys from her pocket and closed the door behind her, “Why don’t you let me show you…”

* * *

Yang skipped along the pavement as she made a turn to Ruby’s driveway. Weiss steadily walked behind her, trying to keep up with the blonde.

“By the way, thanks for making this for Ruby. It saves me the hassle for cooking dinner for her tonight.”

“… What?”

Weiss question was never answered as Yang plugged the key and turned it, effectively open the front door.

“Ruby! Hello~” Yang exclaimed loudly as she pranced into the house.

* * *

Ruby groaned as she heard Yang’s voice echoed throughout the house, quite audible despite the barrier of the door and her headphones. Luckily, her microphone didn’t pick it up.

Suddenly, Ruby’s chat began to blow up people asking why she groaned all of a sudden. Ruby quickly put back on her smile, “It’s alright guys! I don’t hate the game at all; we barely got started since I’ve been talking to you all for quite a bit. It’s just my sister Yang decided to pop in unannounced today.”

Hearts began to fill the chat.

Ruby rolled her eyes amusedly, “I know you guys love her, but we have a game to play here! I haven’t even gotten through the tutorial cause of some technical difficulties in the stream… Which by the way, can you hear me properly still?”

* * *

Hearing no response Yang sighed, “Ah, what did I expect? We did just interrupt.”

“Interrupt?”

Yang shrugged, “Eh, it really depends since whenever I turn up, they all start begging me to never leave.”

“Yang, you didn’t even answer my implied question.”

Yang shrugged again as she heard her phone vibrate in her pocket, “Wait… Oh, Blake needs help in something, I should go back to my house and get her container before I go to her apartment.” She said as she began to head out the door.

“Wait, let me just leave the container on the kitchen counter-”

Yang stopped and turned to Weiss, she squinted at her before she resulted in a grin, “How about you go upstairs and tell Ruby you made something for her.”

“… Why would that be necessary?”

“Well, if Ruby sees that food on the counter, she’ll presume that is was from me. You should tell her, so she’d start begging food from you and not from me.”

“Again, what’s with you and-”

“BYE~” Yang shouted before she slammed the door shut.

Weiss stood there bewildered at the Yang’s dramatic exit. She looked towards the door and then upstairs. Lastly, she gazed down at the last container of lasagna, “… I may as well do so.”

She walked upstairs again and turned left to Ruby’s room. She heard clicking coming from the gaming room. Her eyebrow arched as she went to the door and knocked.

“YANG! Why is it every- Oh!... Weiss? What are you doing here?” Ruby said as she blinked away the anger for Yang and stared down at the container, “… Is that for me?”

Weiss nodded, “Well, I made too much at my house and I decided to give some to you.”

“Oh.” Ruby said with her cheeks pink… probably from the warmth of the room.

“Um…” Ruby stuttered for a moment as she glanced between Weiss and then her gaming room, “Uh… Can you wait for me in the kitchen? I need to deal with something right now.”

Weiss tilted her head in confusion and leaned to the side to see Ruby’s set up. Her eyes widened, “Oh! Uh, I’ll wait in the kitchen.” She said promptly as she went downstairs.

* * *

After a few minutes of Weiss tapping her nail on the bench top, she heard Ruby’s footsteps coming from the second floor.

“Ah… Hey Weiss!”

Weiss pushed the lasagna to Ruby as she crossed her arms and looked away, “Um… I made lasagna… Have a try.”

Ruby smiled gratefully at Weiss and peeled the plastic lid and sniffed the aroma, “… Mmmmm, smells good!”

Weiss smiled to herself, “… it… it’s not restaurant quality but it’s edible.” For some odd reason, she was getting all shy.

Before she could continue, Ruby interrupted, “MMM! WOW WEISS! This is delicious! I’ll take this over a restaurant any day!”

Weiss blushed at the praise.

“Gosh!” Ruby exclaimed as she took another bite, “Definitely beats Yang’s cooking any day and… Weiss?”

Weiss pursed her lips to avoid smiling too much, “Is there a problem?”

Ruby looked up in curiosity and closed the container. She swallowed the remaining food in her mouth, “Um… Usually you take these comments in stride…”

“Ah, that is because… I’ve never made any food for anyone before… You’re the first person who ever actually tasted my food in front of me.”

Ruby grinned as she leaned on her hand, “Well, your food is amazing. 10 out of 10 absolutely extraordinary!”

Weiss let out a smile.

Ruby giggled as she straightened herself up, “Adorable.”

Weiss stopped smiling and stared at Ruby inquisitively.

Ruby realized her slip and cleared her throat, “But seriously… When you say no one… Neptune has never tasted your food before?”

Weiss’ brows furrowed, “Why does everyone presume Neptune would have tasted it?”

Ruby stopped frowning at herself own mentioning Neptune and traded it in for a confused look, “Well…” Ruby was too curious for her feeling at that moment, “Isn’t he… you know… your boyfriend?”

Weiss blinked, as if she was suddenly brought back to reality, “He is.”

Ruby nodded, awkwardly shuffling as Weiss didn’t explain, and also trying to find a way to tell Weiss about her other obligations.

Weiss, somehow, received the message, “Anyways, I’m sorry for interrupting that stream. That was highly unprofessional of me. I should leave anyways.”

“Uh…” Despite Ruby’s obligations to her channel, she still wanted Weiss around, “WAIT! M… maybe you can join the stream today?”

Weiss widened her eyes at suggestion.

Ruby regretted her action and tried to take the steps back, “Uh…Um… You probably are busy so-”

“I wouldn’t be imposing, would I?”

Ruby stared at Weiss in surprise, “Um… No, the game I’m playing would be better with more people…”

Weiss smiled, “Well, I would love to join. But I will warn you, I have never really played video games before… so… I might be incompetent.”

Ruby just stared at her gob smacked, “You… never… The problem isn’t that you’re ‘incompetent’, what happened to your childhood?!”

Weiss just stared blankly at Ruby.

The brunette chuckled nervously as she rubbed the back of her neck, “Ah… Just realizing now… sorry to bring it up…”

Then, Ruby abruptly stood up and shot Weiss a charming grin, “Well, why don’t I get you set up.”

* * *

After a few minutes, Ruby and Weiss were set up, ready to start the stream. Ruby had dragged an old gamer chair from the storeroom, and an extra headphone set. She had adjusted the camera to fit both of them into the screen and made sure that the sound and microphone was still working. She tapped a black piece of paper over half of the camera lens to hide Weiss, “I want to make your entrance a big reveal.” She explained as she sat back, her hand hovering over the mouse so she can resume the live stream.

Ruby had halted herself to make sure, “Okay… So, your phone is ready?”

Weiss nodded, “… I hope everyone likes me.”

Ruby glanced back as she moved the chat to a separate desktop, “Oh, they will like you.”

Weiss looked oddly at Ruby, “How are you so sure?”

Ruby didn’t reply as she instead giggled at the chat, “While the stream was paused, they are doing role playing. Hah, that’s cool! At least they get along.”

She sat back up as she plastered on a friendly smile. She clicked the mouse.

“Hey guys! Look who has returned!”

Weiss watched as the chat became progressively faster. Ruby just continued.

“I hope I wasn’t away too long. But anyways, I know you are confused at why we are at the starting screen once again.”

Weiss rolled her eyes, as she read the chat, “Ruby, they are not confused about the starting screen. They are asking about the camera, they think something is wrong.”

Ruby chuckled as people changed their question about the camera, to who is behind the other half of the screen. She grinned, “Alright, let me just go get the camera in full screen.”

After some clicks she began to explain, “Alright, as you know from earlier in the stream, someone interrupted me and… first of all, it is not Yang.”

Weiss decided to pipe in, “Wow, Yang is popular with your fans. They are all sending broken hearts.”

Ruby chuckled, “Anyways, since this person is free today, I decided to bring her on the stream as your guys keep repeating how this game is better with more people. And lucky for you, since I wasn’t too deep into the story yet, I’ve decided to start over. But, without further ado…”

She glanced to Weiss, “Drumroll please?”

Weiss rolled her eyes affectionately as she began to tap on the table.

“I reveal to you… WEISS!” Ruby said as she pulled away the black half of the camera.

As Weiss came into view, people started to comment on her.

Ruby smiled as she pointed towards the chat, “See! I told you that they would like you! They think you’re pretty too.”

Weiss turned to Ruby, “Too?”

Ruby sputtered for a bit as she faced the camera, “Let’s get started! Shall we?”

However, the viewers did not forget this reaction.

* * *

As Ruby grumbled loudly as the game listed out all the pieces of evidence that Weiss had found, “How are so good at this?!” She exclaimed.

Weiss giggled as she checked the chat. He eyebrows furrowed. “Weisby? WhiteRose? Ruby, why do your viewers think we are a couple? I guess the Internet is a wild place?”

Ruby froze. As she cleared her throat again, she paused the game. “Um… firstly guys, she’s got a boyfriend. And um… Weiss… Speaking of uh… couples… I… uh…”

Weiss turned to Ruby expectantly.

The chat started to blow up as they understood the situation that was unfolding in front of them.

“Uh… Weiss, I’ve been trying to find the right time to tell you but… the reason they actually think we are a couple is… that… I’m…”

Ruby sucked in a deep breath, “I’m gay!”

The whole world stood for a moment, at Ruby’s revelation.

Weiss stared at Ruby… “I see.”

Ruby slowly began to cower in her seat, “Um…”

“That explains why you have all those LGBTQ movies stacked in the shelf.”

Ruby was speechless.

“So…”

Weiss blinked before she looked at the screen, “I’m not homophobic. Like how some say, ‘don’t assume’.”

“Oh… so you’re fine with it?”

“Well yeah, I did vote yes behind my parents’ back.”

Ruby grinned as she pulled Weiss into a hug, “OH WEISS!! YOU ARE THE BEST!!”

* * *

An hour has passed, and Ruby clicked the stream off.

“Well, that was a ride.” She stated as she took her red headphones off.

“It was certainly a trip.” Weiss added as she gently pulled off her white headphones, “I can’t believe I missed out on something like this.”

Ruby stilled, playing with her hands, “It… it doesn’t really bother you?”

“What bothers me?”

“Me being gay. I probably shouldn’t have came out to you in the middle of a stream in PUBLIC! Maybe you are trying to save face and be polite even though you actually do have a problem-”

Weiss put her hand on Ruby’s shoulder and stared at Ruby directly into her eyes, “Breathe with me Ruby, breathe and slow down for a moment.”

They both took a minute to breathe, Ruby’s quickened breaths finally matching Weiss’ slow and calm pace.

“Maybe Ruby… you shouldn’t put words in my mouth and believe me when I say it _does not_ bother me at all.”

“Really?”

“Yes really. Honestly, I should have put the clues together because of all those LGBTQ movies and the fact Yang constantly mentions how you momentarily crushed on a friend whom I met, which she kept using gender neutral terms for, which I’m guessing is Blake now that I think about it-”

Ruby groaned as she buried her hands in her head, “Why does she keep bringing that up!!!!!!”

Weiss smirked, “Well judging from her stories you were very obvious, and it was a… and I quote this from Yang, ‘a classic romcom in the works.’”

“It’s still so weird Yang shipped us and Blake had no qualms about it.”

“You know I think they both secretly like to ship people. The amount of romance gossip Yang keeps spouting about people whom she thinks will ‘hook up’ together at work is astounding.”

“Oh, you haven’t sat through Blake’s rants at relationship drama in her books.”

They both stared at each other before they burst out laughing.

Weiss’ laughter died to a chuckle as she remarked, “Goodness, this day have been mighty fun. Wish I played more games when I was younger, I definitely missed out.”

Ruby paused for a moment and looked down shyly, “I… I know you are busy woman but, this day was fun, and we can do it again… We don’t have to stream it either you know… I can show you some of the classics, or some of my old childhood games!”

“Classics?”

“Yeah! Like we can go down to the arcade and find those retro games like Pac Man and Donkey Kong! OH! I should also show your Super Smash Brawl! Pokémon! The Mario series! AND!... uh…” Ruby paused

The brunette then blushed in embarrassment as she rubbed the back of her neck awkwardly, “Whoops… you didn’t even agree and I’m getting excited already… Don’t forget, you don’t have to do this or anything I suggested. To be honest I’m still surprised you decided to even play with me today, since you’ve never touched a game in your life… Who am I kidding, you probably don’t even want to be here now, you are probably tired and want to go home and-”

“Ruby.”

The red themed lady was stopped in her tracks as she hesitantly answered, “… Yes?”

Weiss smiled back affectionately, “I would love to.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone!
> 
> Today, not much is happening with the chapter, except that I added a little bit more dialogue in the last part :3
> 
> Tomorrow I've got a packed day so hopefully I'll be able to get the chapter up sooner rather than later. So, I'll just see you all in the next chapter, see you then!


	14. The Strength of Love

* * *

**_This specific lesson was something I learnt recently when I met and interviewed Neptune Vasilias for this book. He told me that his relationship with Weiss Schnee taught him to see and judge the ’strength of love’. He had taught me that not only does love grow stronger, but it can also grow weaker. At the time of their relationship, he noticed something was… odd, that the strong love between them was not as strong as it once was. He told me it was that at this moment he believed that Weiss Schnee was slowly falling out of love with him…_ **

* * *

Weiss groaned as she stomped into her house, the keys almost smashing the table as she harshly threw it down. She kicked off her white high heels and flung them near the shoe rack by the door, uncharacteristically leaving them there without even fixing them. She pulled her long alabaster hair from its uptight bun, as the hair flowed out in relief while she slumped on the couch.

She heard a light knocking on the front door. She sighed as she stood up and stretched her arms above her head. She walked towards the door once again, pulling up her white leggings that had slowly inched down from under her blue dress during her fit of rage. She put the shoes on the rack back in order as she smoothed out her hair. Shaking her head slight, she pulled on a hesitant smile and opened the door.

“I’m sorry I just left you in the car Neptune, I… I just needed time to… take some time to allow myself to fume alone.”

Neptune awkwardly rubbed the back of his head, “… It’s alright angel, I totally understand.”

Weiss dropped the smile and grumbled as she stepped aside to let Neptune in, “I know that they have been planning this ever since we were 7 years old but, we are adults, just let us go at our own pace… you get me?”

Neptune nodded as he walked into the living room and sat on the couch.

Weiss walked in and sat on the other side of the coffee table, on the opposite couch. Neptune raised an eyebrow at this.

Weiss threw her hands up into the air, “Out of my siblings, why did I have to be the one they expect to do their bidding! Whitley and Winter have absolutely no problem with keeping up with their expectations and has that bond with mother and father dearest! I may as well not exist to my parents at all! But NO, they have to step all over me now!”

Neptune looked down, “Well… Maybe they just want you to have a good life… Maybe they are looking out for you…”

Weiss sighed as she rested her head in her hands, “Neptune, it is just that you cannot understand what I mean. You never had any siblings that overshadowed you or be compared to you. And even if they wanted me to have a good life, they barely know anything about me to have any idea of what to do!”

Neptune, with a downcast look, cleared his throat as his hand came to rub the back of his neck, “If the… if the idea of being married to me is that much of a problem… I’m pretty sure that my parents would have no problems in canceling, they always have my best interests in mind.”

Weiss expression became mortified at Neptune’s conclusion, “No, no, no Neptune… I didn’t mean it that way, I just don’t want our relationship planned and controlled for us… And also, the fact they want us to get married so soon! We’ve only been in a relationship for over a year, we are not even engaged!”

She flailed her arms with her response. As she calmed down, she noticed the distance between them. Cursing at herself, she got up and walked to Neptune’s side, sitting down.

Neptune followed her movements, his mouth tight lipped as he saw the distance she maintained while she was right next to him.

Weiss caught this reaction and scooted closer until their knees were touching. “Don’t misinterpret my words… I still like you very much.” She grabbed his hands with hers and looked at him straight in the eye, “If you ask me… they are lucky that I fell for you anyways…”

Neptune analyzed Weiss’ eyes. His smile faltered for a moment before he decided that Weiss was being honest, “… Yes, we are happy together, aren’t we?”  
  


Weiss smiled and nodded in response.

Neptune grinned for the first time in a while and squeezed her hands, “Okay… Okay! But we shouldn’t let this whole formal lunch thing ruin our day! I haven’t seen you in a few weeks because of obligations but… Maybe, since we are both free, maybe we can go on a romantic date-”

**Ring! Ring!**

But the doorbell ringing again interrupted the sweet moment between them. However, Weiss was unfazed and unaffected by this predicament, as she just promptly got up and walks over to the front of the house to answer the door.

Opening the door, she is greeted by a loud gasp.

“HUH?! You’re here Weiss?!” Ruby gasped loudly as she flailed her arms around dramatically as she started to go off in an explanation, “I thought you weren’t here! I was throwing rocks at your window and living room hoping you would answer! Didn’t you hear them? Me and Yang were at it for almost half an hour!”

Weiss rolled her eyes affectionately and put her arms on her hips, “Didn’t I tell you? I had to attend a lunch meeting with my family and I only just got back.”

Ruby paused for a moment, “Oh… you did mention that… you said you might be a bit late depending how the day went.”

Weiss then crossed her arms as she was suddenly brought back to the events from earlier in the day, “Ugh, do not remind me of that. I’ve had too much stress for today. I’ll tell you eventually, but right now, I just need to get away from it.”

Ruby’s eyes widened at the sudden bitterness in Weiss’ tone, the heiress must be really sour and mad about whatever happened earlier. “I guess if it is too much… you don’t have to go to the picnic that we organized today.”

Weiss sour attitude disappeared quickly at the mention of picnic she had now just remembered that she was invited to, “Oh! No Ruby, I’m not cancelling! No, no, no… I frankly need this picnic to relax… that’s what you do in picnics right?”

Ruby giggled at Weiss sudden change of heart and her odd question.

“Weiss? Is everything okay there?” Neptune’s voice echoed down from the hallway as he started to approach the door.

Ruby flinched at the sudden appearance of his voice and timidly stared up to the blue-haired boy than took his place next to Weiss. Her smile disappeared as her vision tilted slightly down, not meeting either of the couple’s eyes, “Um… Was I interrupting something? You can really cancel if there is something important that you two were planning or something.”

Weiss shook her head as she put her hands in front of her to wave off Ruby’s offer, “No Ruby, we don’t have anything planned right now, he was just dropping me off here since he came from the dinner as well.”

Neptune glanced towards Weiss with a confused expression, unsure how to react about Weiss brushing off the suggestion he was about to make earlier.

Weiss caught the look once again and faced her boyfriend, “I’m sorry Neptune, I may have forgotten about this when I was stressed about the lunch meeting but, I actually had planned a few days before that I was going to have a picnic with my friends.”

Neptune raised an eyebrow, “A picnic?”

“Yeah… Would you like to join as well?” Weiss proposed.

Ruby’s face however morphed into one of unease, as she didn’t want to have to put up with the couple being lovey dovey in front of her… especially with her situation with Weiss.

Luckily, the couple didn’t notice this expression as they were to engross into their small conversation.

Neptune shook her head, “I… I’d rather not, picnics are not exactly my cup of tea… I’m just more surprised you’re willing to do something like that. I remember you absolutely detesting to go outside when you were young.”

“Well, people change Neptune.”

A silence was then casted over them. A sudden and unexpected tension filled the atmosphere. Ruby tapped her fingers behind the back as she tried to severely not break down under the pressure of her awkward third wheeling. She looked away as Weiss and Neptune were having some sort of telepathic conflict in their eyes at the moment. However, this internal battle was starting to prolong itself, the intensity of Weiss’ eyes becoming slowly more deadly… were couples always… bickering like this?

Feeling the need to move one, Ruby cleared her throat awkwardly so they wouldn’t be stuck there forever, “Um… so are you coming or staying Weiss?”

Weiss was the first to break her trance, as she turned to look at Ruby with a sweet smile on her face, “I am still up for the activity Ruby, I’ll just get something more appropriate for the park and meet up at your house, okay?”

Ruby nodded slowly, looking between the couple with a bit of concern. Neptune caught Ruby’s eyes and gave her a friendly smile, such as the one that Weiss gave to her albeit, more neutral… Oh, they didn’t want her to be here right now… and she didn’t want to be here either if they suddenly break out in an argument.

But this understanding was broken as Weiss turned to Neptune with a faux smile, “Well, since I’m here at home safe and sound Neptune, maybe you can go start to head back to your place… I know the place is quite far from here and it does take a while to drive there… You may as well get a start now.”

Neptune was taken aback by Weiss’ attitude, he was expecting for the both of them to talk about what was bothering them but instead, he was being sent home by Weiss… Weiss must be stressed from today to bother with anything.

He looked to Ruby and slightly bowed his head in respect out of habit, “It was nice to see you again Ruby.” He then turned to Weiss and gave her a soft kiss on her cheek. He gave one last look to the girls before he flashed a smile and got into his car and drove out of the suburbs.

Ruby then turned to Weiss whose eyes were closed as she took a deep breath in, then out. Ruby tilted her head in confusion, “Weiss?”

Weiss opened her eyes and shook her head with a smile, “Do not worry about that Ruby… I’ll just meet you at your house okay? I presume everyone is there waiting.”

Ruby nodded her head as she passed Weiss a smile before Weiss closed the door. As Ruby begun her way back to her house, her mind was whirling around with questions as to what had just happened.

****

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! 
> 
> This chapter also hasn't changed much, which thank goodness since I had a lot to plan for. I've started a DnD Campaign with some friends and I am the DM who decided to make a homebrew story. So, wish me luck! I hope they like the story I prepared for them.
> 
> Anyways, I hope you are all enjoying these re-uploads. If I'm correct I think I stopped uploading around chapter 21 and we are almost there! Once that chapter passes it's all new content which I hope you guys like :D
> 
> I'll see you all in the next chapter!!!


	15. Rain Brings Patience

* * *

**_Weiss Schnee loves the rain. She told me it was a rainy day that reminded her the importance of patience to love. The rain reminded her of a time when Ruby Rose was patient enough to allow her to slowly open up to her. She said that loving someone is like a rainy day. When it rains you would wait for sun to come out the next day, such as when you love someone enough that you would wait forever for them to come out for you…_ **

* * *

Weiss frowned as she watched a singer performing in the television. She was huddled on her leather couch, bundled in a blanket with a bowl of chopped fruit beside her. She stabbed her fork into another piece of strawberry and stuffed it into her mouth. With the singer hitting another perfect note, she groaned as she picked the remote beside her to switch the channel. She kept flicking through the channels before she landed on old reruns of ‘Better Homes and Gardens’. Letting out a satisfied hum she buried herself into the couch, pulling the blanket around her closer to her chest.

However, a tennis ball bouncing off the window of the living room interrupted this peaceful moment. She turned herself on the couch to look over the backrest at Ruby, who was hanging off the fence by her arms. The said brunette grinned and waved back at Weiss, despite the backdrop of an oncoming storm.

Weiss passed on a polite but forced smile as she waved back quietly, her form slowly inching back down on to the couch, not wanting to get up and return the ball.

Ruby, however, did not get the message as she instead tilted her head to the side in curiosity to Weiss’ odd behavior. She heaved her arm over the fence and made gesturing motions for Weiss to come outside.

Weiss groaned as she peeled off the warm insulating layer of her knitted blanket and physically flinched as her bare feet met the cold tiles. She quickly scuttled to the door, where her outdoor thongs were. She quickly slipped them on her feet, before she took a deep breath and trudged outside.

With her arms crossed, she made it to the middle of her backyard.

Ruby squinted her eyes at Weiss quizzically from her perch on the fence. Ruby was now sitting on the fence. She crossed her ankles as she leaned slight closer to Weiss, “So… what’s up?”

Weiss’ eyes shifted her eyes to the left, “… Nothing much.”

Ruby sucked in her lips at Weiss’ non-committal answer. She paused for a moment as she slightly swung her feet back and forth, “Anyways… I wanted to ask you for your number.”

Weiss then stared at Ruby; her eyebrows arched at the odd question.

Ruby began to blush red as she stumbled over her words, “Uh… it is not like I’m asking you out… which I… am not doing,” Ruby internally cringed at her opening sentence, “It’s just that… despite us being friends for a while now… I actually don’t have your number… and I sometimes just like hearing your voice- AND all my friends’ voices rather than texting… you know. Uh… yeah so I’d rather call but I know that most of my friends like to text for convenience so I’m not pressuring you to use you voice to call-”

“Ruby…”

The said brunette stopped herself in her word vomit, “… yes?”

“Just… please stop talking about that.”

Ruby tilted her head at Weiss’ sudden cynicism that was reminiscent to the time that she first met Weiss, “… Is there something wrong?”

Weiss grumbled.

A lightning flashed through the sky, as a sound of thunder followed closely after.

“You know… you can talk to me if you need to vent.”

Weiss growled, “YOU STUPID DORK! I DON’T WANT TO TALK ABOUT IT!”

Coincidentally with her outburst, rain had started to fall aggressively down upon both of the women, the sudden downpour of water immediately drenching them. As their clothes soaked them to the bone, another flash of lightning along with a crack of thunder shook the ground momentarily.

Suddenly the light of Weiss’ living room shut off.

Weiss hands clenched angrily as she glared up at Ruby, “Now thanks to you calling me out, we are both drenched!”

She angrily stomped to her door, her cold wet hands fumbling with the handle before she got a grip and slid it opened.

Ruby watched Weiss shiver as she moved into her house. She then quickly hopped off the fence and ran for shelter in her laundry room. As she shrugged off her jacket and wrung her hair out of water, she felt a small pit of guilt… Despite Weiss being angry for some reason… it was kind of her fault that she called her out at that moment… She knew that it was going to rain soon thanks to her weather app, but she still didn’t listen to the warnings.

As she walked through the living room to her stairs where her room was up at, she noticed the sheer coldness of her house, as a puff of steam was emitted from her lips. She rubbed her arms to help herself keep herself warm as she tried her hardest to walk up the stairs, with her wet clothes weighing her down. Then with her bare foot coming into contact with the cold wood of the step, she realized that Weiss must be freezing! Her house being one of the new modern ones, the heating system relied on electricity, unlike her house, which was older and had a still working fireplace. It was hidden in the other side of her hallway that lead to her front door, the entrance to the room towards the end of that hallway. As she reached her room, a light bulb appeared over her head and she rushed inside and changed out of her cold clothing.

* * *

Weiss shivered as she pulled at her new long dress. She was freezing but, wasn’t in the mood to wear something constricting as pants. She wandered into her living room, plucking her knitted blanket off the couch and wrapped it around herself. She then sunk into the now cold leather, in which her warmth from earlier had disappeared. Curling in closer, she nestled herself as much as she could into the couch, the stark white interior of her home now making her feel colder than she really was.

In a sliver of hope, she grabbed the air conditioner remote off the glass coffee table and pressed the buttons. She was hoping that some sort of miracle would at least make the heater work.

In her amidst of trying to bury herself into the couch even more, someone decided to knock aggressively at the door. Weiss froze for a moment… was someone trying to break in?

“WEISS!” A muffled voice reverberated through the door.

The tension in her muscles relaxed as she rolled her eyes at Ruby, really not wanting to be disturbed at the moment. She cursed inwardly as she had to leave the couch that only started to manage to retain her body warmth, for her slippers on the floor. She waddled angrily towards the door and swung it open.

“Now what?”

Ruby stood out in the cold, taken aback at Weiss cold attitude. She gripped on the handle of her umbrella, “Come over.”

“… What?”

“Well, there is a blackout and it’s cold in there since the heaters can’t work.”

“… and? What about it?”

“Well, my house has a fireplace and I think you should stay until the electricity comes back on.”

Weiss stopped for a moment, as she contemplated her options… it was either Ruby or she freeze to death in her house. She sighed as she dropped her angry features… why was she directing all her anger to Ruby?

“I… just wait, I’ll need to lock up the house.”

* * *

Weiss shook off the water on her closed umbrella as she entered Ruby’s house. She slipped off her boots, thankful she decided to keep on her fuzzy socks to combat the cold timbered floor.

Ruby locked the door and picked the umbrella from Weiss’ hands, putting it upon the rack. She basically skated around the hall with a twirl before she turned towards Weiss, “Make sure you are careful, I just cleaned these real good earlier today.” She looked to her back and pointed towards the room at the end of the hall, where a warm orange glow was radiating out of, “Just head in there, I’ll just go grab something in the kitchen.”

Weiss watched Ruby peculiarly before she headed towards room, stumbling a bit as she tried to keep herself stable. She sighed in relief as she took a footstep into the carpet of the room, with no chance of slipping. After she got her two feet on to the red carpet, she reveled in awe at the hominess of the room. Her eyes wandered over the lush red walls, that had shelves lined with photos and knick knacks that Weiss guessed were inside jokes with the family and family friends. Her eyes were then drawn towards the fireplace nestled in the wall. She walked towards the fire, her hands out towards the warmth the flamed glowed. As she was getting comfortable, she turned to see a comfortable beige couch. Backpedaling towards the seats, she plopped in comfortably, pulling her blanket she brought from her house closer to her body.

As she got more settled on the couch, she let her eyes wandered to the top of the fireplace. Her eyes softened at the sight of a family portrait. Not of the formal kind, but more of a candid photo, that was blown up to a large size and painted by a stylistic artist. It has seemed to be a moment in the park, where young Yang was playing a ukulele as a younger Ruby seemed to be singing at the top of lungs while holding a spoon as a microphone. Their parents sat beside them as they laughed and clapped to the song that seemed to be playing, as they all enjoyed the sunny day on a red and whited checkered picnic blanket under a shady tree.

“Uncle Qrow took that photo.”

Weiss’ head whipped around to see Ruby gazing at the painting. She held two mugs of steaming hot chocolate by the handles as she walked next to Weiss and sat down, passing her one of the mugs.

“Then, he sent it to his friend Ms. Peach and asked her to paint it for us.”

“It’s… beautiful. It seems like a beautiful memory.”

Ruby smiled fondly at Weiss’ words, “Yes, I remember it vividly… I may have been young at the time, but I do remember…” Ruby let out a chuckled as she continued, “I recall that it was a pretty funny moment… Yang just got the ukulele and only knew how to play happy birthday… But Mom and Dad were both so proud that we sang to her playing it over and over again… Good times.”

Ruby wiped a small tear away, “It’s… not that I’m not enjoying life right now… I can still feel a different type of good time now… but I do have times where I… just feel under the weather… you know…”

Weiss curled into the couch, as she looked guiltily down at her mug of warm hot chocolate. She took a long sip, as she reveled in the peaceful moment between her and Ruby… before she broke it.

“I’m… I’m sorry that I just… yelled at you earlier… It was just at that moment; I wasn’t in the best mood and something was really annoying me, and it was all pent up inside, so it just came out-”

Weiss halted herself before she ran out of reasons. She glanced at Ruby who looked towards her, okay with her to continue, to open up.

The alabaster girl cleared her throat as she began to fiddle with the handle of the mug.

“Ruby… I appreciate you trying to get to know me better but… this is something I rather not talk about right now.”

Ruby immediately scooted closer until their shoulders bumped. She looked Weiss in the eye as stated, “It’s fine! You are not obliged to read me your life story… whatever you feel is comfortable is just fine.” After a pause, she added, “But… just so you know, wherever you need to talk to me, I right here.”

Weiss eyes widened at the offering. She allowed a content smile to fill her face as she dropped her head onto Ruby’s shoulder, “Thanks… Thank you very much Ruby.”

The said brunette mouth formed into a wobbly smile, as she hoped Weiss did not see her light blush, “Y… yeah, anything for you Weiss.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everybody!
> 
> Personally I like rainy days so don't be surprised if there is multiple chapters with rain in it :3
> 
> Anyways, not much has been changed in this chapter, I was pretty satisfied when I typed this one as well so I didn't feel the need to add much.
> 
> I doodled the painting that was over the fireplace so I hope you all like it :D
> 
> I'll see you all in the next chapter!


	16. Changes Through Love

* * *

**_Ruby Rose constantly remarked to me that it was love that changed herself for the better. She would drill this lesson through many stories how love from her family and friends have made and changed her to the person she is today. However, as wonderful and moving those stories are, Ruby Rose always fondly remembered a memory when her love (albeit still recognised as a crush) had changed Weiss Schnee and her life into something much better…_ **

* * *

Ruby wrapped her hands warmly around the mug of her hot chocolate, as she walked around her now clean backyard in the dark and mysterious glow of the evening.

She first moved over to the shed, which was empty from both sides, but towards it’s left, laid a neat pile of wooden planks that were ready to be reused for her project later. She then walked around, reveling at the sheer healthiness of the grass, despite the planks dampening any possible sunlight for years.

Ruby then traversed to the center of the backyard, as she begun to map out her plans in her head. She decided that her garden should be a mix of her mother’s past plans of the backyard and images Ruby herself had thought for the future of her garden. She pictures being able to replant the roses that her mom had planted near the shed, but one side instead of being flowers was a cherry blossom tree – if it were possible.

Ruby then began to turn her head towards the other side of the backyard when she started to pick up faint giggles and gasps coming from the other side of the fence.

She ignored it at first, until she heard a gunshot.

Ruby’s concern grew a tenfold as she placed her now empty mug on the cement porch near the entrance of her laundry room. The brunette then made a running start as she ran towards the fence and jumped in haste.

As she vaulted over the wooden barrier, she stopped midway in the process, as she balanced on the fence in cat pose. She felt her heart feel lighter in relief as she realized that the heiress wasn’t in any danger but was watching a TV show.

Once that relief faded away, she tilted her head in curiosity at the show that Weiss was watching. It featured a brunette lady wielding some sort of glowing gun, that was aimed and shot at people who seemed to melt into the ground in affect to that. She has seen this show before… but only in passing.

Unbeknownst to Ruby, she subconsciously leaned forward towards Weiss’ side of the fence as she tried to decipher what show that Weiss was watching.

**Crash!**

**Clang!**

“Opmffffff!” ruby exclaimed as she felt her butt land on some sort of spiky pillow.

She looked to the floor and observed blankly.

Oh. A tree cushioned her fall.

Ruby turned to see a terracotta pot on its side, with a huge crack splitting the pot into two pieces.

Oh. A tree had to fall to cushion her fall.

Ruby then looked at the tree beneath her, observing its spherical shape.

Oh. Weiss’ lollipop trees had to fall to cushion her fall.

_Weiss’ lollipop trees had to fall to cushion her fall._

Ruby’s face morphed into one of comedic horror.

It was one of the short trees that Weiss grew from saplings and had cut the leaves every month to keeps it’s round and precise shape.

It was one that Weiss had a watering schedule for, so she doesn’t make the plant wilt or drown.

It was one of Weiss’ most prized plants in her garden.

“RUBY!!!!!!!!!!”

* * *

Ruby sat in Weiss’ living room, nursing a bump on her head with an icepack. As she winced in slight pain from the angry bump Weiss had given her, she looked at the TV, which was paused.

**Roll…**

She awkwardly retreated even more into the couch as she watched Weiss walk past her, across the room to the kitchen where she heard her backdoor neighbour let water run from the faucet. She was probably washing her hands. Ruby dared to look behind the couch to see that in the backyard, Weiss had pushed up the pot upright and taped the crack on the side with duct tape for the time being. Ruby then cringed at the sight of the huge indent in the tree’s spherical shape… It was going to be a long road to recovery for that tree.

**Clink**

She slowly turned her head back towards the glass coffee table, where two plates and two glass cups laid. She then turned her attention to Weiss who sat on the opposite couch on the left, eyes closed as she tapped her finger on one of her crossed arms.

Ruby gulped as she begun to slowly inch towards the other side of the couch, intending to get up and retreat back to her place.

“Ruby.”

The brunette froze in her tracks. She nervously chuckled as she fiddled with the icepack she brought to her hands, “H… hey Weiss.”

Weiss sighed as she opened her eyes, “… Well?”

“… well?”

“Well? What do you have to say for yourself?”

“Um…” Ruby looked down guiltily at the icepack, before she faced Weiss to stare her right in the eye, “I’m… I’m sorry I sat on your tree.”

Weiss sighed as she returned the stare into the eye, “BUT why did you fall onto the tree in the first place?”

“Uh… I was in my backyard and I heard some sort of shooting sound and I thought you were under attack, so I panicked and leapt over your fence… But you were just watching a TV show and I was curious?”

Weiss stared blankly at Ruby, an unamused frown on her face. She inched closer to Ruby from her spot on the separate couch and flicked her on the forehead, “And that is some justifiable reason to almost kill my plant?”

Ruby pouted, “I did say I am sorry.”

Weiss glanced away as she picked up something, she had placed on the couch beside her, which effectively was hidden from Ruby’s view until now, “Here, your bottom probably still is hurting a bit, and the tree was wet from the rain in the afternoon so you must be feeling a bit cold.”

Ruby’s eyes landed on the heat pack that Weiss presented to her. “Uh… No need… the tree kinda softened my fall…”

Weiss growled as she pushed the heat pack into her face, “Just take it so this does not get anymore awkward!”

Ruby flinched as she used her right hand to quickly grab the heat pack, “U… Uh, the tree was a bit spikey… yeah…” Ruby tried to finish as she sat on the heat pack. She then glanced at Weiss… she could feel the alabaster woman’s angry aura emit around her… she was still probably mad about the tree.

“Um… when we get around to buying some of the plants for my project… I’ll shout for any of the plants you want to buy.”

Weiss eyed her before she closed her and exhaled, her shoulders slumping with the breath out, “There is no need to do that Ruby, offering to buy plants I want would damage your wallet rather than mine. I can cover the costs for myself just fine.”

At that moment, the doorbell decided to ring.

“Ah, you’ve got company… I probably should head out then.” Ruby said as she begun to rise from the couch.

“Nope.” Weiss said as grabbed Ruby’s shoulders and sat her back down on the couch.

Hearing the doorbell ring impatiently again, Weiss scuttled to the front door. After a few indecipherable murmurs that travelled down the hallway and left Ruby more questions rather than answers, Weiss returned with a white box with red accents and images fried chicken on the box.

“Food!” Ruby yelled in a whisper.

Weiss moved to the coffee table and kneeled on the floor. With a knife and fork began to pull chicken and chips out of the box. She placed the contents on to the plates.

“Uh… Uh?” Ruby questioned through noises as Weiss placed one last chicken in the box.

“There’s more chips and chicken in the box if you feel like more.”

“What?”

Weiss raised an eyebrow as she gestured towards the food, “Don’t you want to have dinner with me.”

Ruby’s heart pounded at bit at Weiss wording, “Of course… but when, how and why?

Weiss chuckled as she turned the un-paused the TV and lowered the volume, “Well while I was outside, I called in some food to be ordered to my door… Thank goodness KFC is not far from the entrance of this suburb that I can get fast deliveries to here… and can I not have dinner with a friend? Despite you almost murdering my beloved tree, I felt inclined to not eat alone tonight.”

Ruby winced at the comment about the tree but bowed, “I am humbled to be allowed to dine in your presence.”

The brunette grinned as she heard Weiss’ musical laughter.

As the show began to play and they both sat in comfortable silence, Ruby looked down at her plate of food as she began to pick out the popcorn chicken to devour first. While she happily munched on her dinner, she noticed the juxtaposition of the fast food being presented on fine gold outlined china, which was decorated with the most beautiful images of painted roses.

Ruby then began to chuckle.

Weiss turned back towards her friend, “Um… what’s so funny? The episode just ended, and we are just looking at the credits.”

Ruby made sure she had no food in her mouth before she spoke, “It’s just that this food does not belong to this plate.”

Weiss arched her eyebrow once again as she analysed the plate, “Oh… that is because these the only type of plates I have in my house.”

Ruby eyes just widened as boggled at the plates, “Really? Oh.” Wiping off her expression on her face, she began to trace the gold outline on the plate… “You know, it kinda reminds me of you.”

“Well of course, I obviously love flowers and other plants.”

Ruby tilted her head as she allowed her train of thought to be voiced out, “Not literally what you like… no I mean what you were like when we first met… I thought you were some delicate and posh thing that really hated my guts… Even though you were the one who attacked me with paint.” Ruby said with a snicker as she faced Weiss.

Weiss puffed her cheeks out as she crossed her arms, “I do not appreciate you bringing up those memories… Gosh, I was such a dolt back then.”

Ruby hummed as she poked her chips with a fork, “Now… you are still fancy and posh like, but now you are doing this whole discovering youself thing! Like finding you like chips and chicken but still being yourself like a fancy plate!”

Weiss arched her eyebrow, “Are you comparing me a chicken on a plate?”

Ruby dramatically sighed, “I’m saying you’ve… I don’t know how to say it but something close to loosening up!” She then allowed her hands to fly up and gesture towards Weiss clothing, “Like you finally wear casual things around us!”

Weiss blushed in embarrassment at Ruby’s attention suddenly being directed at her, “What in the world are you implying?! I dress like this at home normally!”

Ruby giggled as she allowed her arms to rest on the ground beside her, “Don’t you remember? Whenever I planned to come over to visit over in the first few months, you wore some fancy-dress frickin’ suit! A SUIT Weiss, I was always convinced that I was in some sort of business meeting!”

“Really? I do not recall those fashion choices of mine; I clearly remember you always surprising me when I am in my nightgown or something.”

“Well, that’s because I surprised you! No planning ahead of any of those visits.”

Weiss sighed, “Well… whatever I had going on, I guess you, Yang and Blake being my first friends helped a lot… I’ve never really ever had a ‘casual’ or ‘comfortable’ moment at my old home.” Weiss gave Ruby a smile.

Ruby then smiled in return, her blush almost wanting to breakdance onto her face.

_CLANG_

Ruby and Weiss’ attention was then drawn to the TV screen.

“I never really asked, but what are we watching in the first place.”

Then, time seemed to stop for a moment as Weiss whipped her head around to Ruby as she faced was taken aback in shock, “… you… YOU DON’T KNOW WHAT THIS IS?????”

“… I’ve only ever caught glimpse of it when I surf through all the channels and-”

“THIS IS UNACCEPTABLE! You need to start at the beginning of the show! Lucky we weren’t focused on the TV, so you skipped some spoilers!” Weiss said with a crazy smile on her face as she grabbed the remote and exited the episode and went through the list that Netflix presented her with the intent of starting her re-watch of the show all over again for Ruby’s sake.

Ruby softly observed Weiss as she fondly leant on her hand that was angled on the table. She listened to Weiss rambling at how great the show is and the genres it contained.

“Weiss… You are such a dork.”

“I’m supposed to say that you dork!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! 
> 
> Sorry I wasn't able to update yesterday. I got too busy and by the time I was done I needed to get sleep for stuff happening today 😅 But I'm back and I'll do the usual daily updates the best I can :D
> 
> Anyways, I realised that I completely forgot to put up the answers for the shows that were referenced in chapter 5! This is the order they all appeared in:
> 
> 1\. The Legend of Korra  
> 2\. Wynonna Earp  
> 3\. Marvel's Runaways  
> 4\. Steven Universe  
> 5\. Legends of Tomorrow
> 
> Honestly if you are queer and haven't had much exposure to representation other than fanfiction, you should give some of these shows a try! I personally recommend Wynonna Earp and Marvel's Runaways, these two (like most of the shows referenced) have impacted LGBTQ+ representation in different ways :D
> 
> So, with that you all have a good day and I'll see you tomorrow with another chapter!!!


	17. Stupidly Considerate Surprise

* * *

**_Weiss Schnee told me that love… makes you stupid. When Ruby Rose heard that she giggled and happily elaborated with a pat on the shoulder, adding that it is a sure sign that you definitely are deep. She would then relate lesson back to a memory from long ago, where she surely made a stupid but considerate decision for her…_ **

* * *

“THERE YOU ARE RUBY!!!!”

Ruby jumped on her spot by the kitchen counter as she was eating her breakfast on the counter of the kitchen. “Um… Well, this is my house Yang.”

“Well,” Yang supplied as she dropped the heavy box of a KitchenAid stand mixer on to the table. “I thought you had already left for work, but I see you are just enjoying my masterful macaroni.”

Ruby gulped as she stabbed her fork into another corner of pasta, “Well… I think if Weiss made me some macaroni, it would be definitely better than yours.”

“Hey!” Yang responded in offence. She then shook her head to forget the remark and refocused back on her original task, “Anyways, I’m here for some paper! Wrapping paper.”

Ruby stuck her thumb out and jerked it in the direction of the second floor, “The rolls are up in the store room.”

Yang nodded with assurance and jogged upstairs to retrieve the items. Ruby kept eating her microwaved heated macaroni. Her eyes followed Yang’s figure as she practically jumped down the stairs and screeched into the kitchen, her left hand wrapped around a roll of blue wrapping paper and her right hand wielded a pair of scissors, “Just don’t mind me as I wrap this.”

Ruby tapped her chin as she analyzed the box as the image got slowly wrapped up, “… How in the world did you afford that? That’s a lot of money gone in a second.”

Yang cut off the desirable amount of paper as she pushed the roll of wrapping paper on to the floor, “Ah, you are right sis, I ain’t made of money. But, the whole of the department I’m part in all pitched in so we can pay it without having to afford too much!!”

Ruby watched in interest as she tilted her head in curiosity, “A present? Someone’s birthday?”

Yang’s mouth gaped as her head slowly turned towards Ruby as she stuck another piece of tape onto the wrapping, “… You are kidding me. You don’t know?”

Ruby looked around before she looked back to Yang, “Um… no? Should I know?”

Yang’s jaw dropped lower before she shook herself out of her stupor and finished wrapping the present nicely, “Um… It’s Weiss’ birthday today.”

* * *

Ruby paced back and forth in front of EBgames, having just finished her shift at work today. She muttered curses to herself for not even knowing Weiss birthday until now.

“Um… Ruby?” Blake interrupted as she approached the brunette. The bookworm the physical flinched at the sudden snap of Ruby’s head as she directed her attention to Blake, an unreadable expression in her eyes.

“… I got your distress text. What is it about a birthday present?”

Ruby’s eyes suddenly got crazy as she stalked up to Blake, before she jumped into Blake and began to moan at her predicament, “BLAAAAAAKE!! I didn’t know it was her birthday todaaay!!!! Out of all the times we spent together, I never found the time to actually ask about her birthday!!!!”

Blake sighed as she awkwardly patted Ruby’s head, urging the girl to ease herself from the emotional weight of the brunette, “And let me guess, today I’m helping you buy a last-minute birthday present.”

At this response she pushed herself off Blake and grinned, “Glad you are happy to help.”

Blake raised a finger to refute the suggestion before she let her hand drop by her side and sighed, “Well, I am already here… I may as well.”

Ruby continued to grin as she grabbed Blake’s wrist and pulled her to a seemingly random direction in the mall.

Blake complied and followed behind, as she tilted her head in confusion, the bow atop of her head almost seeming like cat ears, “Um… Where exactly are we going?”

Ruby hummed a song to indicate Blake to patient as she pulled Blake outside the mall and towards an external store, the RSPCA. Blake visibly perked as she was led into the store, towards the adoption centre.

“… You are getting her a pet? Are you sure? This type of decision really shouldn’t be a surprise…”

Ruby happily bobbed her head as she skipped over to the pets on display, “Yep! Weiss always expressed wanting a cat, she has enough room for one… And recently she’s been searching up a lot of cat videos that talk about pet care. She was actually planning to get one next month, so all we are doing is express shipping the whole thing.”

Blake slowly nodded in understanding as the pair stopped by the cats’ section.

As they gazed upon the different types of cats, Ruby side glanced towards Blake and wore a nostalgic smile on her face, “You know… If this was five years ago, I may have thought it was a date.” Ruby stated with a cheeky smile then gracing her face.

Blake rolled her eyes in amusement as she nudged Ruby, “You know that I’m generally not interested in people now.”

Ruby chuckled, “And yet some people go to you for love advice.”

Blake’s eyebrow quirked in thought, “That is true… why is that?” The bookworm them shook off her train of thought and focused at the task at hand, “What kind of cat do you want to get her?”

Ruby rubbed the back of her neck as she observed all the cats that played happily in their well-kept cages, “Um… What do you suggest? My dad and sis got to choose Zwei so I never really had to make any choice concerning animals so… yeah.”

Blake looked at the range of cats, “I suggest to not going to the kittens. As adorable as the babies are, you should give some of the year olds and up a chance, some of them are rescues and due to their age, they don’t get adopted so easily.”

Ruby hummed in agreement as she wandered more towards the left as she let her eyes dance up and down, flicking in between cats.

After a few minutes, she pointed to a specific cage, “That one.”

Blake turned and looked towards the cage she was pointing to and tilted her head at the cat. It was a white Turkish Angora cat. It was white, fluffy with a long feathery tail. What was most distinct about this cat in general was that it had Heterochromia, where its right eye was blue and the left was a golden brown.

Ruby leaned closer as she chipped in, “Its gold eye is even in the same eye as Weiss’ scar!”

Blake looked towards the paper that accompanied the glass cage with details, “This girl is two years old. Her family apparently abandoned her when they moved out of the country. The new family that moved into the house called RSPCA when they heard her meowing from the attic space up in their house.”

Ruby let out a sad whine, “Aw, you don’t deserve that.”

Blake looked at the cats of the store and back to this one, “She is really beautiful, why wasn’t she adopted earlier? It says that she was rescued a few months ago, I’m pretty sure some people would easily have gotten her once they saw her.”

Ruby leaned back to also observe and judge the place, “I think that people do keep adopting the kittens and the generally younger cats… Also, I think because she was put all the way here that people forget or don’t notice her. All these cats in this part are covered by this fish supply aisle.” She supplemented as she patted one of the shelves of the aisle that was against the pair’s back.

After another moment of watching the cat Blake faced Ruby seriously, “So are you going to get this cat for her?”

Ruby nodded her head.

“You do know that especially for this breed, she would be more costly than some of these other cats.”

Ruby nodded her head, “Weiss definitely deserves this.”

“Don’t you think you are giving her a lot… I know you are friends but from all the stories you tell, she seems to not give much in return.”

Ruby placed her hand on the glass, which caused the cat to walk up and sniff the barrier, “It’s just my nature to do so… And I’m not buying her everything. We’ll just get her a bed and some cat food for tonight and tomorrow; I’ll bring Weiss here to buy the rest of the cat’s stuff. I’m pretty sure she would want to buy that with her own money. She has been telling me how she is kinda feeling guilty cuz’ I’m apparently spoiling her.”

Blake chuckled as she turned and waved her hand at one of the employees in the distance who was monitoring the area, “You are spoiling her… And you also just want a reason for you two to be alone together tomorrow, don’t you?”

Ruby nervously laughed as she rubbed the back of her head in affirmation, “Now that I would really wish that would be a date.”

* * *

Weiss yawned as she pulled up to her driveway. She allowed the car to come at a stop at the front of her garage door, and then just sat there without pulling out the button to turn off the door. She stretched as she recounted her day.

To say it was busy was the least to say.

She started off with a normal morning, her routine absolutely the same. However, once she got to work, she was greeted with party balloons and the happy faces of her employees. It was only then she realised that it was her birthday.

She was so caught up in her day-to-day life that she forgotten her birthday was within this month.

Nonetheless, this treatment of her employees did not go unwelcomed, as she enjoyed being able to chat to everyone, join in their antics that she would sometimes miss when she got called to meetings and hours long of paperwork. She even got to share the cake in which one of the employees somehow discovered was her favourite flavour, without her ever really mentioning it. However, what she was pleasantly surprised was how well and observant her employees were. Within the time she spent at the bank of only a few months, they knew small things about her that people like her ‘friends’ back at home did not even know about her. They knew, ‘how she takes her coffee’, ‘that she really loves cooking (this was evident from one of the presents the department gave her)’, genres of books she was interested in… the list goes on! It was a definite and welcomed change from her life at the mansion with her parents.

Speaking of which…

All the touching and heartfelt moments she experienced at her work was quickly diminished when she returned work early to have a relaxing day. It only took a text message from a curious Yang for her to realise again that her parents always held an annual ball every year on her birthday! She groaned and took the longest time to get dressed in protest. But alas, her fate soon came when Neptune came knocking to pick her up so they can get to her ball together. Albeit, she had a fun time dancing with Neptune… she would rather forget the rest of the party and thanked Neptune for feeling a bit sick, so she had an excuse to leave early.

After blinking her eyes a few times, she glanced to the digital clock in the car and watched the numbers blink at 12 am… it was definitely time to turn in for the night.

* * *

Weiss yawned as she stepped out of her garage door and dropped her car keys and a container of cake that her butler Klein snuck in for her by the kitchen table, knocking off her high heels… before going to pick them up and place them neatly beside the couch.

She allowed herself to flop onto the couch, too tired to make her way up the stairs. Despite her droopy eyes, she felt like watching an episode of her favourite TV show to bring her mood back up so she could go the sleep as content as she could be possibly be right now… which doesn’t seem to be much since the ball just ruined her day.

As she bent over to grab the remote from the coffee table, she saw a light being emitted from her left side. She turned her head and saw the yellow glow of Ruby’s outdoor lights resonate from her side of the backyard.

Weiss raised an eyebrow at this. It was too early in the morning for Ruby to just be out in her backyard.

Being too curious for her own good. Weiss found the will to get off the couch and make her way outside to see what was happening at the other side of the fence. She knocked on the wood, hoping for an answer.

When nothing replied, she pulled the stepladder she had on standby and stepped atop it, her arms crossed on the top of the fence so she could comfortably see over the fence while being on the balls of her feel.

Weiss was taken aback to see Ruby on a chair, sleeping soundly as she had a red cloak, that she briefly recalled Ruby saying that it was from her mother, wrapped around to keep her warm in this cold evening. A spike of panic rose in Weiss’ chest… What was that dolt doing sleeping outside?!

“RUBY! Wake up!!!”

“Aaaahhh?” Ruby slightly shouted as she jumped up from her chair, the red cloak falling to the ground. In her sleepy haze, she looked wildly around for the source of the noise.

Weiss sighed as she quickly added, “Pick up your cloak you dolt!”

Ruby didn’t even meet eyes with her as she bent down and picked up the cloak in a slight panic. As she gathered the fabric into her hands, she sighed in relief and comfort as she gazed back up to look at Weiss.

They happily just stared at each other for a moment before Weiss cleared her throat.

Ruby’s eye lit up in realization as she rushed out, “Oh! HAPPY BIRTHDAY WEISS!!!” She shouted as her left hand quickly dug into her pocket and pulled out a small party popper, which she tugged on the string to allow it to go off. She let out a small cheer, which then slowly decreased in volume as she realized saw Weiss not reacting.

Weiss gave her blank stare for a moment, taking a moment to comprehend what had just happened. Hugging the fence, she belted out in that musical laughter that Ruby loved so much, her voice going back and forth from giggles to wheezes of exasperated oxygen as the laughter took the air out of her.

Ruby smiled happily before she giggled along with Weiss.

Weiss wiped a tear from her eye as she breathlessly let out, “Oh gosh Ruby! That, that… That was definitely the highlight of my day. You do realize that it’s twelve right now, my birthday was yesterday.”

Ruby giggles stopped as she bashfully kicked the dirt, “Shoot! I was hoping I wasn’t too late. Yang mentioned that you weren’t going to at home for a while… So, I decided to wait out here thinking you won’t be gone the whole time, I guess I was wrong.” She chuckled as she rubbed the back of her head in embarrassment.

Weiss sighed as her quiet giggles finally subsided. After hearing the words from Ruby, she twisted her head back to look towards her house, her eyes landing on the container that laid on the top of her kitchen table. She faced back to Ruby and gave her a soft smile, “Since, you decided to risk a cold just to say happy birthday to me, come over, I have some left-over cake.”

Ruby lit up at the prospect.

* * *

Weiss pulled the thermometer from Ruby’s mouth as she checked the girl’s temperature, “… Good, it seems you didn’t get a temperature.”

Ruby sighed in relief as she grabbed the plate of cake from Weiss hand that the heiress was holding hostage until they confirmed that Ruby was indeed not sick.

Weiss sighed in relief as she placed the thermometer on the table and raised her left hand to flick Ruby on the forehead. The brunette yelped out from the pang of pain as she almost begun to choke on her cake.

Weiss rolled her eyes affectionately as she moved to sit next to Ruby and faced her, “As sweet as the gesture was Ruby, I appreciate it if you do not ever put your health in jeopardy just for me, okay?”

Ruby swallowed the piece of cake and gave the post-birthday girl a toothy grin, where a piece of fondant was stuck on her teeth. Weiss giggled, “And… there is some cake on your teeth.”

Ruby gasped as she ducked and turned her head away as she tried to use her tongue to rub the fondant off.

Weiss huffed in amusement, as she leaned a bit forward to see the polka-dotted-box that Ruby brought with her, which was hidden from her view by the armrest of the chair. The box itself seemed to be a lidded box, which the design choices of adding ribbon on the sides and a bow at the top gave the illusion of the box being tied. Weiss observantly noticed the crudes holes were stabbed at the top of the box and around on the walls as well.

“Um… I’ve been meaning to ask since you got here, but what is in that box?”

Ruby mouth split into a cheeky smile as she swallowed the cake still in her mouth and wiped off icing from her cheek. “And this is what I stayed outside for!” Ruby announced as she stood up and carefully lifted the box on to the couch, the box making no sound when it came into contact with the leather.

“Now… usually she would make some noise, but I guess since it is so early in the morning, she would be asleep right now.”

Ruby sat rigidly in her seat, “… Asleep… Don’t tell me…”

Ruby bobbed her head up and down to urge Weiss to continue, her grin getting impossible wider.

“Don’t tell me you brought a snake!”

Ruby’s face morphed into one of confusion before her excited expression returned as she chuckled to herself… Weiss really had some sort of way to make the whole situation dramatic. She reached to the sides of the lid and slowly pulled it off.

“I would like you to meet… her.”

Weiss peered into the box and gasped. She watched in awe as the cat in the box unfurled from its position and sit up. It stared up at Weiss. The heiress let out an ‘aw’ and reached into the box and pulled the white fluffy cat, sitting the animal on to her lap as she stroked its soft fur. The cat began to purr and lean into Weiss hand, “Where did you get this wittle sweetheart from?”

Ruby giggled as she contently watched Weiss baby-talk to the cat, “Well, I got her from the RSPCA store… more specifically the rescue section.”

Weiss smiled as she scratched the top of the cat’s head, “She is absolutely adorable! She is lucky that you adopted her.”

Ruby lifted the box off the couch and retook her spot beside Weiss, “Technically, I didn’t save her… you did. Happy birthday Weiss.”

Weiss turned to Ruby and rose an eyebrow. She let the cat onto the floor to explore the house and took the piece of paper that Ruby presented to her. She began to tear up, “… Me, you are giving her to me?”

Ruby nodded, “Yep, you were talking about getting a cat next month… So, I decided to act upon it.”

Weiss lunged at Ruby and grabbed her into a tight hug, her head nestled into the brunette’s shoulder, “… thank you! Thank you…” Weiss sniffed into the brunette’s shoulder.

Ruby wrapped her arms around the alabaster girl and let her head rest a top of Weiss’, “Anything for you Weiss.”

As the two basked in the moment, Ruby watched the cat jump onto the glass coffee table, its head tilted in confusion at the pair. Ruby chuckled, “She is just really happy… Miss Cat?”

Weiss let out one last sniff as she pulled away from Ruby and wiped a tear from her eye, “T-that’s right, we still have to name her.”

Ruby tilted her head, “We?”

Weiss’ cheek dusted with pink as she picked the cat up from the table and focused on the cat on her lap with a smile, “Well of course, you got her for me so you should be part of the decision.”

Ruby shrugged, “Well, I got nothing… It’s too early in the morning to think.”

Weiss looked around her surroundings, her eyes eventually landing on the piece of cake on Ruby’s plate that was left abandoned on table. Her eyes lit up, “Cakes!” She made the cake faced her, “I hereby name you Cakes.”

The cat purred at the attention and began to rub her face into Weiss’ hand, to which the girl looked upon fondly and gave the pat that the cat was urging for.

“Cakes?”

Weiss looked towards Ruby, “Well, I want to remember this moment… and what better way but through the name of Cakes. Her fur is even the same shade of the white cake… Is there a problem with it?”

Ruby smiled and then let out a small chuckle, “No, everything’s fine. It’s just that it sounds like a name that I would give to something. Especially since I love sweets!”

Weiss smiled as she fondly looked down at Cakes, her cheeks blushed pink for a moment with her voice soft and quiet, “That’s good… I was hoping you thought that… I named her Cakes cause she will forever remind me of you.”

Ruby stared at the image of Weiss, her cheeks slowly becoming redder with every second that the two sat in a comfortable silence.

It was only then she stopped denying one thing…

That she was falling.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone!
> 
> This chapter is one of my personal favourites with the introduction of one of my favourite OCs... CAKES!
> 
> Honestly I was excited to get to this chapter cause I wanted a break from drawing humans and draw a little kitty :3 (very on brand for me honestly)
> 
> Anyways, we are getting closer to the newer content! Can't wait to show you all :D So... I'll see you all tomorrow!!!


	18. Love's Frustrations

* * *

**_Love can be frustrating. Yang Xiao-Long told me this lesson about love when her own love life was not going swimmingly as some people would have thought. She told me that when you love someone, it could bring highs and lows… or it can be frustrating when someone realises that their romantic love may not be enough for the other person. She shared this sad sentiment with an equally bittersweet story which at the surface may seem fine… but from her perspective and another’s, she could the threads beginning to unravel…_ **

* * *

Weiss stretched her arms before she opened the door, a friendly smile on her face, “Hey Neptune, I was surprised you said you were coming over… out of the blue.”

Neptune took a step inside the house and pulled out a gift basket from behind his back that her had bought from Body Shop and shoved it into her face, “For you! I know how much you love this brand so… I bought you some.”

Weiss forced the corners of her lips to pull up, as she placed the pungent smelled basket on the small table beside the shoe rack… personally she liked floral smelling soaps rather than the strong smell of vanilla, but she appreciated the sentiment. Neptune tilted his confusion at Weiss reaction, but shook it off as he allowed himself into the home, closing the door behind him.

As he and Weiss walked down the hallway that led to the living room, Weiss filled the silence, “So… a basket? What are you apologising for?”

Neptune sighed as her ran his hands through his blue locks, “Um… Sorry for getting sick and making you leave your party early… I pulled you out of some conversations that you seemed invested in, and you missed out at even dancing to the band that was there… I’m sorry.”

Weiss wore a pleasant smile as she filled a glass of water in the kitchen and walked back to the living room where Neptune had made himself comfortable on the couch facing the TV. She placed the glass on the table and sat on the chair opposite him, “It’s no problem at all. Frankly I have to thank you as I did want to have a relaxing birthday this year.”

Neptune was about to smile back before he flinched at hissing that came from the floor beside the couch, “W-what?! You have a cat?”

Weiss jumped up from her couch and coaxed the cat to quiet down as she picked up the white feline and sat beside Neptune, “Her name is Cakes.”

Neptune gulped as he watched the cat sit from Weiss lap as she eyed him warily and allowed a growl bubble in her throat.

Weiss looked down, scolding at Cakes, “Young lady! Behave yourself. Neptune is not dangerous, so don’t attack him.”

Cakes stopped growling looked back up at her, eyes gazing up in understanding but also confusion.

“Good girl Cakes, just behave okay?” Weiss elaborated as she scratched the chin of the cat who purred happily in return, forgetting about the blue-haired man beside her owner.

“She usually isn’t this hateful; Yang had a hard time, but Cakes didn’t want to outright murder her when they first met.”

Neptune, still confused by the situation asked, “Wait, when did you get… Cakes…. it’s only been a week since I got sick and she seems to be pretty attached.”

“I actually got her immediately got her when I got home after I dropped you off.” Weiss chuckled as she lovingly patted Cakes as she remembered, “It’s a cute story actually. Apparently Ruby was waiting in the backyard to surprise me for my birthday, but technically she missed out on my birthday since it was twelve am when I reached home… that dork.”

Weiss let Cakes off her lap and watched the cat play around with a ball that had a bell inside it.

“Her surprise was Cakes, so I decided to name the little feline after her.”

Neptune looked at Weiss and thought aloud, “So… Ruby is really close to you…”

Weiss brightened up as she smiled back at him, “Yeah! Ruby and I are really close! I’ve never had a friend like her before.”

Neptune nodded slowly… Before his train of thought could even leave the station, he denied it… it just couldn’t be. Instead, he focused for another reason for him being there today, “Speaking of friends, some of my business friends have invited us to their cruise this evening. I know that before you moved here, you always wanted to go on a cruise.” He bumped into her playfully as he continued, “And I know there is a good spot to share a romantic kiss.”

Weiss blushed at the memory and giggled as she pushed Neptune back in return, “Gosh Neptune! It’s been a while since I ever mentioned that!” She buried her face in her hands, “Now that I heard someone say that back to me, it sounds SO embarrassing.”

Neptune grinned as he put an arm around her, “But I do anything for you Snow Angel.”

Weiss froze slightly at his choice of wording, an uneasy churning beginning in her stomach.

Not taking notice, Neptune continued, “Also! Some of our friends will also be on the cruise.”

Weiss echoed, “Some of our… friends?” She fiddled with her hands as she looked down at her lap… those ‘friends’ were people she did not want to hang around with, especially when half of the time they were only trying to impress her due to the amount of money she was born into.

Neptune excitedly continued, “Yeah! And if we leave now, we can get there on time and maybe even snap a romantic photo of us in front of the Harbor bridge at night.”

Weiss had to pull herself out of the half-embrace they had, “Um… I’m sorry Neptune but I already made plans with some of my friends here.”

Neptune’s happy expression visibly slumped as he faced her, “Really… I’m too late again, aren’t I.”

Weiss sighed as she took his hand, “As lovely as that sounds, we’ve already bought tickets for the movie… so the agreement has already been cemented.”

Neptune sighed as he took the glass of water from the table and gulped it down. Weiss offered her open hands, which he passed her the now empty glass.

As he watched Weiss get up to put the glass into the dishwasher, he observed the place and his girlfriend, “That explains your casual clothes.”

Weiss nodded as she rechecked the kitchen to make sure everything was stored away securely so Cakes could not rummage in them while she was out.

He sighed again as stated, “Recently… it’s been hard to find time with you.”

Weiss was startled at his sudden honesty. She methodically sat beside him and leaned on his arm, as she linked their hands together, as if she was commanded to do so. Not knowing what to say, she just hummed in response.

Even Cakes, who grew tired of trying to retrieve the ball from under the couch, looked at the scene with… a somewhat of confusion at her owner’s actions and the nature of this… relationship.

Neptune slightly leaned towards her, staring at their linked hands, “… it’s been a while since we ever had interactions like these.”

Weiss froze. Neptune could see her mind whirling in thoughts through her blue eyes but couldn’t decipher what it was.

She then sat up, nudged him away and slowly nodded, “… That’s because I got my own life now, I’m not confined to the mansion… so I’m not actively asking you to…” she chuckled at a line, “to ‘save’ me from the clutches of the ‘Schnee Norm’.”

Neptune brows furrowed at her action, as he stared at their still linked hands seeming… disconnected, “You did always complain about it back then.” As he let another moment pass, brought their links hands to his chest, “I know your life is different, but I still want to be a part of it… maybe today is not free but… how about Saturday?”

Weiss looked at him quizzically, as she pulled away her hands, looked away and pondered, “… I’m not sure, I have to check if I have anything planned.”

He noticed there was… a lack of commitment in that statement. Neptune mulled over it for a moment, before ultimately deciding to stay positive, “… I’ll take my chances then.” He cleared his throat before he dived in, “If everything is okay with your plans, what about a date? A dinner at a restaurant by the riverside-”

**Ring! Ring!**

He was stopped in his sentence as the doorbell rang. Weiss moved her attention to the clock about the TV and gasped, “Oh! Time flew faster than I anticipated it too.” She grinned brighter than the blue-haired man has ever seen her before. Weiss grabbed her side bag from the table and headed to the door, as she expected Neptune to follow after her.

Neptune got up from the couch as he heard the door open and a new voice ring out.

“Yang! I thought we agreed to meet up at Ruby’s house?”

“Yeah, but Blake wanted to come over and pick you up. It was either that or Ruby wanting to jump over the fence again.”

“At least someone around here knows something called privacy… uh, don’t tell Ruby that though.”

“Hm~ Why is that?”

“S-shut it you oaf! I just… quite like how me and Ruby have a system of talking which is… not too formal.”

“Hmmm~”

“It also saves time so stop insinuating something!”

“Alright, alright ya prickly porcupine.”

“Hey!”

Boisterous laughter echoed through the hallway, “Fine, fine. But everything secured? Is that cat demon gonna be fine on her own?”

He heard Weiss sigh, “Her name is Cakes and I’m pretty sure she’ll be fine. I locked all the rooms, checked the doors and kitchen… And I assume you bought those tickets?”

“Yep! I saved it on my phone, so we don’t have to use paper.”

Neptune decided to use this moment to reach the door.

Weiss flinched as she felt a presence behind her and stepped out, as Yang moved back to make space for them. After she locked the front door, she turned around and proceeded to introduce the two to each other.

“Yang, this is Neptune my… um… RUBY AGAIN! WHY DO YOU KEEP BREAKING MY TERRACOTTA POTS!!!!”

Weiss harshly stopped in the middle of her line as she sprinted to the brunette who had fell into the pot, the impact breaking off a part of the lip on the right side.

Neptune watched on. While Blake picked up the broken parts of the pot off the floor, Weiss begun fret over Ruby as she examined the girl for any injuries. He took note of her scolding yet fond tone for the brunette.

“Ahem.”

Neptune turned to the blonde beside him, who had decided to introduce herself instead, “The name is Yang Xiao Long, the big sister of that troublemaker who fell into the plant. And you must be the elusive boyfriend, Neptune.”

“You… you know who I am.”

“Of course! I’ve been wondering what you look like.”

“… and elusive?”

“Well, I’ve heard about you but never really have seen you before until today.”

Neptune looked down to his feet, “Yeah… I haven’t been around much.”

“Yang, it’s time to go!” Ruby yelled as she waved from the three’s spot on the sidewalk that led to Ruby’s house.

“Whelp! I guess it’s time to say bye. It was nice meeting you Neptune.”

Yang offered a smile as she walked in the direction of her sister and friends, who already begun to walk down the sidewalk.

Neptune sighed.

* * *

As Yang lagged behind her friends she absentmindedly listened to their conversation.

“So… who's your favourite superhero!?”

“Black Panther, what about you Weiss?”

“… Black Widow. She is absolutely amazing! An assassin and on a team where she doesn’t have any sort of power, that’s just amazing.”

“True. What about you Ruby?”

“I AM GROOT!”

“You dork.”

Yang, instead of piping in, she observed the group… Ruby and Weiss’ shoulders are touching as they walked together.

Huh… they always have to be in some sort of contact, don’t they?

She then looked back as she watched Neptune look dejectedly at group before he slouched and trudged into the car. Her eyebrows rose as she saw the boy let his head fall sadly onto the top half of the driving wheel as he seemed to be muttering to himself… Hm…

“-ang. Yang.”

She snapped her head back forward as he eyes met Blake’s. She looked to the other pair and saw that they were looking at her curiously too.

“What’s your favourite superhero?” Blake asked, Yang being obviously only shoved into the conversation at the last moment.

“… Oh! The Hulk of course! I love to smash stuff. Yeah!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone!!!
> 
> I'm very sleepy... and probably should go to bed so I'll see you tomorrow :D
> 
> See you all then!!


	19. Painful Endeavours

* * *

**_Love can make you vulnerable. Ruby Rose confided this story to me when I was hurt from a healthy but heartbreaking break-up. She told me that in order to love, we have to make ourselves and our own emotions vulnerable to the person subject to our love. And due to this vulnerability, whatever that person may do, whether they intend it or not, could hurt. However, showing this vulnerable side can allow love to also heal the pain too…_ **

* * *

Ruby giggled behind her hand as she watched Weiss spiral down a descent of frustration at the Maxi-Claw machine at the front of the arcade.

“Stop laughing you dolt! I almost had it this time!”

Ruby giggled harder as Weiss pushed another coin into the slot of the machine, the lights and claw raring with life as she attempted to control the flimsy claw towards the Kirby plushie.

“Weiss~ as much as I like to see someone as perfect as you keep trying, we’ve been at the front of the arcade for almost 20 minutes! Don’t forget we’ve been in the actual place for a frickin’ hour! As much as I love games, I also love FOOD!”

Ruby watched Weiss’ expression as her eyebrows scrunched in annoyance as the claw unsurprising failed to pick up the game character. Ruby’s amused smile quirked a bit as she noticed the light blush Weiss had on her cheeks from Ruby’s off handed compliment. After another moment passed, Ruby’s smile grew a little tired as she tugged Weiss arm away from the controls before the alabaster woman’s hand could push the button to send the claw down.

Weiss faced Ruby in a fury, “RUBY!”

Ruby’s smile turned into a satisfied grin as she finally got the woman’s attention. She jogged lightly on the spot as she spoke with a light urgency, “WEISS, at this rate the claw machine is gonna eat up your wallet! And come one, lets eat! I even promised you earlier that we are going to that café you like with all the fancy tea!!!”

They had a brief stare down before Weiss sighed and relented, “Fine, I shouldn’t be gambling all my money away like that.”

Ruby smiled back as the claw automatically shot down at an attempt to grab the plushie due to the pair leaving the machine idle in the turn. The brunette’s eyes widened as she watched the claw take hold of the plushie and suspend it into the sky.

Weiss raised an eyebrow at Ruby’s apparent shock and turned to the machine, her jaw slowly dropping in disbelief. Her eyes followed as the claw moved across the area, stopping with a sudden jolt, the plushie almost being rocked out of the claw’s grasp.

Then Kirby fell into the prize compartment.

The machine lit up at the achievement as Ruby grabbed Weiss by the shoulders and rocked the girl back and forth, “OH MA GOSH! OH MA GOSH! YOU GOT IT!!!!!! WOOOO!!!!”

Weiss was then shoved gently towards the machine, Ruby’s little claps of excitement urging her to get the stuffed toy.

With the plushie in her hand, she faced Ruby as she checked the Kirby for marks or anything that alarmed her.

“So… why Kirby?” Ruby asked as the both of them started walking side by side in the direction of the café.

“Hmmm…” Weiss hummed, as she stared at the Kirby plushie and stated, “You can inhale large amounts of food just like him.”

“W-what? What are you talking about? Psh, how can I eat that much and still stay small?” Ruby stuttered in embarrassment, as she suddenly felt exposed.

Weiss arched an eyebrow and exclaimed, “Exactly! That’s what I’ve been asking, I’ve seen you inhale mountains of cookies and still feel hungry.”

Ruby retorted, “Well just so you know those cookies were on sale! So, the more the merrier.”

Weiss rolled her eyes in affectionate amusement.

“And honestly I think I got a REALLY fast metabolism… Whelp, it’s a perk either way in my opinion!” Ruby happily expressed

Weiss giggled as she went into a small content daze at the plushie, “… It’s cute and soft…”

She glanced at Ruby who was humming gleefully beside her, “Well it’s Kirby.”

“Here, take it.” She said as she pushed the plushie into Ruby’s arms.

“W-why?”

“I originally got it as it reminded me of you, so… you should have it.” Weiss stated blissfully unaware of Ruby’s face, which turned redder by every word.

Ruby looked at the plushie as she fiddled with the character’s stubby arms. “… Thanks Weiss.”

“Not a problem at all Ruby.”

* * *

The pair was now situated at a table by the window, which overlooked the fountain in the town’s square. Their lively conversation had died down to a comfortable silence, as both of the women drank their concoctions from flowery and shiny china, Weiss drinking the traditional English Breakfast tea and Ruby investing in a warm mug of hot chocolate with pink marshmallows. Ruby squealed when a waitress came around with their slices of strawberry cakes that they ordered.

Weiss chuckled as she watched Ruby practically shake with happiness on the spot as the strawberry dessert was served in front of her. The brunette pulled the dish closer and began to dig into the cake, her eyes sparkling in delight. Weiss gave out a sigh as she decided she’ll get into her food later and opted for a question that has been brewing on her mind for a while.

“So Ruby… I’ve been curious but… I was wondering why exactly Yang was leaving?” She said as she raised her teacup towards her mouth.

Before she took a sip, she opened her eyes to see Ruby looking at her with one of the most shocked expression on her face that she has ever seen in her life.

Weiss’ hands slackened her grip on cup out of surprise.

_CLANG!_

__

Ruby dropped her fork dramatically on the plate of her dessert and looked Weiss right into the eyes, “… WHAT?!”

Weiss jolted in surprise at the sudden clash of cutlery, causing her to shakily place her teacup on the saucer with a loose grip, resulting in some tea spilling out.

“Goodness…” She muttered as she quickly wiped up the spilt tea with a napkin.

After a few moments passed, she composed herself as much as she can and looked towards Ruby, “Um…” Weiss then slumped her shoulders and cradled her forehead with her thumb and index finger, “Ah… she apparently failed to mention that she has not told you.”

“Weiss, how did you hear about this?”

The said lady sighed as she placed her arms in front of her on the table, “She gave in her resignation letter a week ago. It caught me by surprise as she has mentioned the possibility of leaving, but I actually didn’t think she would.”

“… Why?” Ruby asked with a heartbroken tone.

“… That’s why I asked you; all she told me was that she was planning to leave. I asked her but she was always so ambiguous about it.”

“…”

Weiss looked at Ruby’s crestfallen face as she stared at her cake, with a conflicted look in her eyes, “… I apologize for you finding out this way through me… But in my opinion why didn’t Yang say anything to you?”

Ruby perked up at that question and jolted up from her seat, looking down at Weiss, “Yeah, why didn’t she?”

And with that Ruby left in a flurry, leaving Weiss alone at the table.

“… Excuse me? Can I get this for takeaway?”

* * *

Ruby huffed as she pounded her fist on Yang’s door, only then remembering she had a doorbell to only then press the button rapidly.

“Alright, alright, I’m opening the door.”

Ruby heard Yang’s muffled voice, the sound of a doorknob and lock shifting as the door opened.

“Hello sorry but- Ruby?!” Yang exclaimed, her hand letting go of the door and allowing it to swing open.

The opened door revealed boxes all around the home. Ruby eyes then wandered over to the two suitcases and duffle bag that were lying near the entrance, as if they were ready to leave.

“… Yang? You’re leaving.”

A sigh resounded behind Yang, who stepped aside to reveal a disappointed Blake who was carrying a small stack of books. She placed the books to on a box nearby and faced Yang, “I warned you… I thought you said you already told her and she was just processing…” She glanced between the two sisters, “I’ll let Yang finally explain.”

And with that Blake walked pass the two and made her way out of the front yard.

Still at the doorway, Ruby stared at Yang with an angry glare, “… Why didn’t you tell me? I didn’t even know you were moving out of your house! AND WHERE THE HELL ARE YOU GOING!!!”

Yang awkwardly rubbed the back of her neck, “Well… technically I’m not moving, all these boxes are Blake’s… she’s moving in, so this place won’t be empty when I’m gone…”

“… Where?” Ruby asked curtly.

Yang gulped, “I… I’m going overseas, to New York…”

Ruby’s eyes bulged at of her head, “THAT FAR AWAY! AND YOU DIDN’T EVEN TELL ME!!!”

“Ruby, the job offer, I’ve been worki-”

“WHY! WHY IS EVERYONE JUST LEAVING!!!” Ruby exclaimed, as she kicked the doormat with a force that made it curl in on itself out of fear.

“R-Ruby, I want you to un-”

“NO!!! JUST WHY DID EVERYONE HAD TO LEAVE! First it was mom, then uncle Qrow left after the funeral! And dad then decided to tour the ENTIRE DAMN WORLD! NOW YOU!!!”

Ruby took a harsh step forward and got up in Yang’s face, “Now you are leaving me for the city of dreams! You are leaving to New York! And where does that leave me! ALL HERE ALONE!!!”

Ruby’s eyes watered, tears cascading down her face, “YOU ARE ALMOST AS BAD AS ALL OF THEM!!!”

Ruby shoved Yang away as her sister tried to reason. The brunette then did a sharp 180 turn and ran towards her house, her sleeved arm rubbing tears off her face until she started to irritate her skin.

* * *

Ruby was curled up on the couch by the fireplace, in the small living room under the stairs. She watched the flames flicker before her eyes, her hands pulling the red blanket from her mother much tighter around her form, the blanket forming a tighter hood around her head.

Ruby then sudden froze in fright when she heard knocking and shuffling coming from her backyard, the rattling of an attempt to opening the sliding door, then the sound of a door swinging open in the laundry…

“Ruby? You here?”

The brunette sighed in relief.

“Just so you know, you should really learn to lock your back door.”

Ruby heard Weiss’ footsteps as she approached the room, she then heard the carpeted steps of the woman before she saw white pristine socks standing in front of her on the floor.

Ruby eyes travelled up to meet Weiss’.

“… Hi…”

Weiss stared back with concern, “… Hey…”

Ruby looked away, adjusting the makeshift hood of the blanket hide her face a bit more.

“Ruby… I don’t really want to push, but you should really talk about this.”

At the thought of confronting Yang, Ruby flinched and angled herself a bit further away from Weiss.

Weiss read her body language, “You dolt… I mean… you know you can talk to me… You don’t have to tackle pain alone.” She knelt down in front of Ruby and gently grabbed the hood of the blanket, tugging it softly off her head.

Ruby faced Weiss, her glassy eyes vulnerably looking at Weiss’.

Weiss carefully grasped Ruby’s arms on the blanket to provide comfort as she rose for a moment to sit beside Ruby, “… It’s good to talk about it, and I’m willing to listen if you want… or even talk for you if you don’t want to say anything then…”

Ruby fiddled with her thumbs under the blanket as she looked down in contemplation.

Weiss looked at the candid family portrait over the fireplace, as she patiently sat beside Ruby.

“I know I… I’ve mentioned it before… But this house used to be filled.”

Weiss turned to Ruby at the woman’s voice, only to see the brunette also gazing upon the family photo.

“… Me and Yang shared a room, my parents and uncle Qrow had their own rooms too… When the accident happened, dad no longer stayed in his room, always drinking away the sadness downstairs in the kitchen… Uncle Qrow opted drinking at bars constantly to get away from the atmosphere at the house… I honestly should have seen it coming, in time uncle Qrow just upped and left. He flew away in search for his long-lost sister… I guess after the accident, he realized how losing family REALLY felt like… Then dad…”

Ruby scoffed as she shuffled her blanket around, allowing the red fabric to fall off her shoulders and pool around her on the couch.

“He! He… Dad just threw himself into work, he took up multiple jobs at the same time. Sure. he saved a whole ton of money, which was more than enough for Yang and I to go to uni, but he was never at home. He was like a ghost of himself, like he died along with mom on that day… Then suddenly, he had some sort of epiphany, and when Yang was in her third year of uni he gave her the reins of this ‘family’ and now is now travelling the whole world. He left too.”

Ruby closed her eyes and sighed.

“Not that dad and uncle Qrow were bad people, no… they still keep in contact, and always try to visit every year. We usually have a small get together around December. But… when we really needed them most, they left… Heck, I hadn’t even graduated from high school when dad left for the rest of the world. That was when Yang really had to stepped up.”

Ruby took a fraying edge of the blanket and twisted it repetitively.

“… She basically became my parental figure for the rest of my life. When I was still in primary and she was still in high school, she was still able to practically raise me from helping me with homework, cooking meals, and just being there for me when no one was.”

Ruby had a soft look flash upon her face, as she recounted the memories. However, the expression turned tense as she clenched her fist and slammed it on the couch. Her mouth opened up in a yell, in which nothing came out. She closed her lips, tears beginning to form in the ducts of her eye.

“And… and now… she’s leaving… just… just like mom did.”

Ruby’s hands went to her eyes, as she rubbed the tears off her face, her voice wobbly and weak.

“I… I’m sorry Weiss, I… I should be over this… I should be over the accident, but here I am with what looks like abandonment issues.”

Weiss’ heart clenched at the sight of Ruby’s tears. In the corner of her eye, she saw Ruby’s hand, in a tight fist that clung on to her red blanket. Weiss placed an open palm in the space between them on the couch, which Ruby shakily proceeded to grab and hold on to Weiss in desperate search for someone.

As Ruby’s sobs quieted down to weak whimpers, Weiss started.

“Ruby, I think you need to understand something.”

The brunette looked into Weiss’ eyes.

“You… You don’t exactly get over loss, getting ‘over it’ is too… impersonal, like you are severing your connection with your mom.”

Weiss placed her left hand over Ruby’s, her hands now grasping the brunette’s left hand.

“You are allowed to grieve; you don’t ever have to stop feeling something when you think of the accident… You have just got to learn to accept. You don’t have to do it now… acceptance doesn’t come right away. You just learn, eventually, over time, that it is not really a loss.”

Weiss takes her left hand and places it over where Ruby’s heart is, “Because your mother is always with you, no matter where she is. And that is something you shouldn’t be sad about, but something you should treasure… that despite whatever has happened, she is always with you.”

Ruby’s tears stopped.

Weiss felt her heartbeat calm down from under her palm.

“In fact, not only is your mother here, but so is your father, Uncle Qrow, your sister… and even Blake and I.”

Weiss looked Ruby in the eyes and gave her a soft smile.

“Everyone who is important to you and loves you… who you consider your family… is always there, and they never really leave, even if they are physically distant from you, they are always thinking and caring about you, because you are also with them too despite the distance…

“So, even if Yang is leaving, you are allowed be sad… but just don’t forget that she never really left you in the first place… despite what they all seem to be doing, they are always there.”

Weiss cleared her throat, “Also, if you ever do feel lonely, Blake doesn’t live that far now, and I’m just a ‘jump over a fence’ away.”

As soon as she let the words out of her mouth, she was slightly winded by Ruby barrelling into her and giving her a tight hug.

“T… Thanks Weiss, I… I really needed that.”

The Weiss hugged Ruby back, letting the younger woman melt into her arms in safety.

* * *

Moments passed and the fireplace now considerably a bit dimmer by the amount of time that had passed, Weiss released her hug and sat close to Ruby, bumping her shoulder with her own to let her know she wasn’t moving off the couch.

“Um… I do have a question though…”

“Hm?”

“How much did Blake tell you? About my sister’s situation?”

“Ah, she told me what was necessary. Like how she is flying out tomorrow, how she has been searching for a job in acting for a while and that this is her ‘break out’ role-”

“Whaaaat? She finally got an acting job! That… that actually kinda explains the secret calls and errands she had to do…”

Ruby then groaned as she facepalmed.

“Ughhh, I must be the worst sister, I was so focused on myself I never asked what was so important that she had to leave the country for! Aw, it’s a dream job and I absolutely blew her off.”

“It’s not your fault, honestly, she should have said something instead of leaving it to the literal last minute… but you two should really talk before she leaves.”

“Yeah… I’ll meet her at her house tomorrow morning… we’ll talk, and I guess I’ll say b… bye…”

“… We can then drive with her to the airport and farewell her there…”

“Yeah, that sounds nice.”

“…”

“…”

“I brought over those cakes we never finished.”

“That sounds nice too.”

* * *

It was the next day, that started with Ruby going to Yang’s and having a heart-to-heart talk. Many tears were shed, and many apologies were handed out. With that settled, in two cars, Blake, Yang, Weiss and Ruby travelled to the airport and said their proper farewells, where once again, many tears were shed, and another long hug between the sisters formed into a cozy group hug.

Now that Yang has boarded on the plane, and Blake drove off into a different direction to go to meet another friend… Ruby and Weiss were now in a white car, heading home.

The silence was deafening but comforting in a sort of way. As they reached another traffic light, which was red, Weiss glanced at Ruby who was still upset over the farewell. Weiss looked around and her eyes landed on a Ben & Jerry’s connected to a 7 Eleven.

With her fingers tapping the wheel, she flicked the lever to let her blinker indicate she was going left.

Ruby gazed outside as Weiss pulled in front and briefly left the car to return with two tubs of ice cream, handing the cookie dough ice cream to her best friend. Weiss then took one of the two spoons and with it still in her hand, she places her palm over where Ruby’s heart was.

“Still there.”

Ruby cracked a small smile. “Right here.”

Ruby then placed her hand over Weiss’, “Now… spoon.”

Weiss rolled her eyes as she turned her palm around to pass Ruby the spoon.

****

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! 
> 
> Yep, I remember people being a little sad from this chapter, so I have a little drawing of Weiss to hopefully ease the levity :D
> 
> Also, I've gotta ask... Has anyone ever wondered who is writing this memoir? Don't worry, I did plan a person to write it... just curious if any of you have theories of who it is. If you got any let me know in the comments! I'll be excited to see your theories :D
> 
> And with that, I'll see you all tomorrow in the next chapter!!!


	20. Dependency of Love

* * *

**_Weiss Schnee told me that loving a person can make you quite dependent on them, sometimes in an unhealthy way. It makes being alone is hard as you always relied on the other person to be there…_ **

* * *

Ruby grumbled as she slammed the fridge door, leaning against the counter as she stared at the box full of washed plastic containers sitting under the table. Letting out a groan, she leaned her head back and closed her eyes.

Before Yang left for New York, in the morning she apologized, the older sister left Ruby with a week’s worth of food, freshly cooked and frozen for her little sister can survive a week without her slightly above average cooking.

But…

The only problem is a week has passed and all the pre-made meals were devoured and digested… even the cookie snack that her sister had made especially for her in an apology for keeping the secret from Ruby.

Ruby opened her eyes, bringing her head back to level. She took another breath as she opened the fridge to _really_ make sure that there was no food left in there.

Ensuring that it was truly empty… she considered going to her phone and ordering food… despite it’s convenience, she didn’t really want to only rely on fast food for the rest of her life, so she may as well start _trying_ to cook now.

With a splash of hope rippling into her form, she walked over to the pantry and opened it… to see that she had still had some dry oats left from when she and Blake had a sleepover a few weeks ago.

She grabbed the box, checking if there was any expiry (to her relief it indicated that it should last for years) and looked at the clock in the kitchen, her brain suddenly aware of the time.

The digital clock displayed the numbers _6:45 pm_.

Ruby pursed her lips as she briefly gazed upon the night sky through her glass slide door to the backyard, before flipping her attention back at the oats.

Sure, oats for dinner is odd, but it’s a start.

* * *

Weiss laid on her stomach on her bed while she flicked through the pages of her recipe book, as she pondered over any simple meals that she could whip up in her kitchen for dinner. As she gazed over a pie recipe she definitely did not have the ingredients for, a smoke started to filter from her room from the outside.

“… Is someone having a bonfire?” Weiss muttered, as she slid the ajar glass door closed… before she slammed it open at the sight of smoke rising through the air.

She stepped on to her balcony, as her eyes bulged at the sound of a fire alarm faintly ringing from the inside of Ruby’s house, in which the brunette had opened all her slide door that led into the kitchen to let all the smoke out.

In a haste she placed her hands on the railing, her feet tensing in the anticipation of vaulting off the ledge… no wait… this is impractical.

She followed the voice of reasoning in her head as she ran downstairs in a hurry to climb over gate and help Ruby out.

* * *

“By the way, thanks Weiss. For you know… vaulting over the fence.” Ruby said as she finished scrubbing the stove top of burnt oatmeal, scraping the remains into the bin she held.

Weiss rolled her eyes amusedly at the specific action as she wiped the table bench of milk that the brunette had accidentally spilled in her panic of the smoke alarm, “Of course… not to mention, basically saving your life too.”

The two stared at each other for a moment before the bubbled into laughter as they both threw the paper towels they used into the bin, before they sat down by the table.

“Saving my life? No wonder you basically leapt over my fence.”

“Well, I’m sorry I had no idea if my best friend was possibly hurt or anything of the sort.”

“Actually, considering you are the responsible one out of the both of us, I thought you would have called triple zero first instead of coming to help. You must’ve been _so_ worried.”

“Ruby, you just somehow dramatically burnt oatmeal. Of course that wouldn’t warrant a call to emergency services.” Weiss deadpanned.

“But you didn’t know that now, did you?” Ruby said teasingly.

Weiss crossed her arms as she looked away. She fumed for a few seconds before she sighed, “Fine. I was worried.”

“Yes! Gotcha to admit!”

“But I still don’t understand that you are _that_ incapable of cooking something as simple as oatmeal. How exactly did you survive off living on takeout?”

Ruby awkwardly chuckled, “Firstly I don’t _just_ live off takeout food, but every homemade meal I’ve ever had was made from Yang. Well, mostly… you do give me some of your meals every so often.”

“… But Yang lived in another house.”

“Yeah, I still didn’t know how to cook so she just always gave me these meal packages every night she would come over to help out.”

Weiss’ eyebrows shot up in surprise, “Help out? You meaning in house chores?”

“Well yeah… except for anything garden-related.”

“Ruby… are you telling me that you’ve been reliant on Yang this _entire_ time?”

“Well, I never really did learn how to cook cause Yang’s a pretty bad teacher and in terms of cleaning I was just always used to it… Oh shoot, am I really that dependent?” Ruby said as she threaded her fingers in her hair as she came to the realization.

“I… I guess I just go so used to it… we just… never changed it.” She winced at the word change briefly.

Weiss nodded slowly, as she stood up while watching Ruby descend into a state of disbelief at herself. She cleared her throat, “Um… I’ll just go check around your kitchen while… you just work through that crisis alright?”

Staring into nothing, Ruby wordlessly nodded as she let Weiss do her own thing.

“Hmm… Okay… I see… Alright, that can work if I can find the…” Weiss muttered to herself as she poked around in Ruby’s pantry and fridge.

She closed the door and headed in the direction of the screen doors, “Hey Ruby, I just needed to pick out something in my house.”

* * *

As Weiss was struggling to get over the fence, with her adrenaline from earlier gone it took her a bit of time to return back to Ruby’s kitchen, where the gamer was now texting Yang manically at her said realization.

Weiss took a breath, as she picked a few things from the kitchen (which is questionable why the brunette had them since she barely cooked) and placed a chopping board and knife in front of the girl. She placed a block of Spam, gesturing to Ruby how to cut, “Well, if you want to get somewhere… you can start by cutting Spam. It is pretty simple.”

Ruby looked up to Weiss, as she put her phone down face up. She glanced back to her conversation with Yang, smiling slightly at her sister’s words of encouragement, “Sure. Let’s wash our hands then.”

* * *

Time passed as the women got into a comfortable rhythm. Weiss manning the stove with a pot of boiling water full of pasta and another pot bubbling with canned tomato sauce, and Ruby stationed in front of the chopping board now chopping up the onions… in which her eyes started to water.

Weiss glanced back, placing her wooden spoon down and covering the pasta with a lid to allow it to cook. She walked to Ruby and grabbed the knife, “I’ll show you next time how to cut the onions and garlic. There are tips and tricks to get these ones right… can you just keep stirring the tomato sauce so it doesn’t burn?”

Ruby nodded, her red sleeves rubbing the tears from her eyes, “Sure, anything to stop my own eyes from burned alive.”

Weiss rolled her eyes affectionately, as she proceeded to organize the chopping board.

Ruby took the wooden spoon and happily stirred tomato.

Then suddenly rapid and precise chopping filled the air… it was definitely a better idea for Weiss to handle the chopping tonight.

As the chopping evened out and became slower as Weiss handled the garlic, a pleasant melody filled the air… Weiss was humming.

It was a song that Ruby could not recognize, but nonetheless anything coming out of the alabaster girl’s lips was always a treat to Ruby.

Ruby took a sneaky glance to girl behind her, observing the sight of Weiss expertly making the garlic into some sort of paste with only the tip of the knife. She watched as her white hair bobbed with her head to the words in her head, as her fingers delicately moved the garlic into a tray with the onions.

Ruby’s head quickly filled back to the pots as Weiss proceeded to get up with the tray in her hand. Ruby tried to shake off her face red with the domesticity of the entire situation.

“Move a bit to the side, it’s time to add the last ingredients.” Weiss had ended her humming in favour for continuing to help cook.

With a slide of the knife, the board and cutting tool now by the sink, Weiss watched Ruby as the brunette continued to stir the sauce, before she went to deal with the pasta.

After a few moments, she joined Ruby by the pot as they both watched the sauce bubble in a comfortable silence.

“You have a pretty voice… I think you should know that.”

Weiss turned to Ruby, a light pink blush dusting her face in embarrassment, “What?”

“Well, I only ever hear you sing when you think you’re alone… and every time I interrupt you act like nothing had ever happened.”

Weiss looked down, playing with her fingers.

“Why don’t you sing more? I would love to hear you sing if you ever do.”

“It… It was a long time ago… I don’t think you would like to hear it, the premise and such is quite mundane.”

“Weiss… either way this story seems important and either way, I got time.”

Weiss took a glance at Ruby, who turned down the intense bubbling into a light simmer, giving the sauce a stir before focusing her attention on her.

“Alright then… when I was young I was taking singing lessons after my parents had found this talent within me. And I loved it. I was allowed to do something I love, and not to mention my parents absolutely approved of my hobby. But… as I got better and better… my parents started to see the potential in my voice and begun to make me sing at concerts and charity balls. Which I did not hate, I positively loved the experience and was happy to go along with it… But…”

A beat of silence passed.

“… But?”

Weiss shook her head, “Like I said, it’s a mundane story… I don’t think you want to hear it.”

Ruby just gave Weiss a worried look from the side. She took a deep breath and decided to change the topic as the woman had started to become visibly uncomfortable at the thought of her memories relating to her singing.

“… Then why don’t you tell me the story of how you learned cooking? I bet that one bring happier memories.”

Weiss smiled at Ruby in gratitude as she took a small spoon from a drawer and tasted the sauce. She sprinkled in a bit more salt and pepper.

“Well, that story involves my butler Klein.”

“You had a butler!”

“Well, I saw him more as a friend. He spent more time with me than my own ‘friends’… Klein would listen to me and go along with my idea despite how taxing they were.”

Weiss motioned for Ruby to keep stirring.

“You see, my parents have always been so… overbearing to say the least. I think they believed that none of us would ever live alone, let alone leave the mansion. So when my sister left the mansion to live with her husband, she told me how wonderful she was living, without our parents worrying too much about what we eat, do, and hold ourselves around others.”

Weiss took a pause to taste the sauce, “Perfect, you can turn off the stove Ruby.”

As Ruby moved some of utensils used into the sink, Weiss held the pot and poured some of the spaghetti sauce into a bowl in the middle of table bench, where there were two plates with plain pasta already arranged on either side of the bench on their own plates. As Weiss filled the rest of the sauce into a separate container for later use, she continued with her story.

“Then, I told my parents how I wanted to try to live by myself, learn how to sustain myself independently. But, they were quite skeptical and said that if only I learnt how to cook for myself, then I can live _by myself._ So I took their challenged and took a cookbook and tried. Lets just say that my struggles and complaints made me realize how stuck up and spoiled I was back then.”

Weiss giggled for a moment, in which Ruby joined in.

“I guess they did realize this about me and gave me a task, knowing that I was too dependent on the people who worked for us to do everything for me, hoping that I would just give up and just stay with them. But what they didn’t count on was my determination. So, while they thought they were victorious, I asked Klein to teach me how to cook… which in turn made me realize that I not only had to cook to sustain myself but I also how to do wash, clean and also _save_ to be able to live independently. Let’s just say I have to thank Klein for all his lessons as I not only learnt how to sustain myself, but also change my perception of others and the people who work for me.

“Then came the time when I had to prove to my parents. And well, they were shocked. They did not expect for me to actually go through with it. But, they had to withhold their side of the promise and they gave me a chance to leave. They were reluctant at first but… as time went on and after my second month living here, I think they are okay with it.”

Once Weiss had finished off, she and Ruby were already seated on opposite sides of the table, digging into their pasta.

“Wow, you have must of _really_ had an experience to get here. You sound like you’ve changed a lot.” Ruby remarked, “Also this pasta is _so_ good! Thanks Weiss.”

Weiss chuckled, “Don’t forget you helped make it too Ruby Rose. But yes, I definitely changed for the better. I’m still changing and that’s okay.”

They both shared a smile as they continued to eat.

* * *

“Well, it has been wonderful sharing another meal with you again.” Weiss said as she helped Ruby putting the dishes into the dishwasher.

“It’s been fun Weiss! But this whole thing just made me realize that I really need to start learning how to do a lot more things around here… I guess I’m gonna start taking cooking lessons… and maybe start researching a bit more, my pile of laundry is turning into a mountain since I’m too scared of ruining all the colour if I do it wrong.” Ruby awkwardly stated as she finished putting in the last plate and putting the correct settings into the dishwashers, as she has always seen Yang do when she did the dishes.

“You know I can help.”

“What?”

“Well, I can give you cooking lessons for free and learning from an actual person than an article or book has proved to me that it is much more fun and easier to understand.”

“You would do that for me?”

“Of course, you are my best friend. I would be happy to help.”

Ruby gave a joyous smile, despite her heart giving out a bit from the unintentional friend zone she was placed in.

“Thanks!” She exclaimed as she gave Weiss a tight hug, who in turn hugged her warmly back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! Another rare note! I just wanted to say I love reading all of your theories, it's really cool to see what you guys all think :D
> 
> Also, thanks for all reading and keeping up! Tomorrow will be the last RE-UPDATE and everything afterwards will be new content! Hope you all like it when it arrives :D
> 
> I'll see you all tomorrow in the next chapter!


	21. The Subtle Scarf

* * *

**_Yang Xiao-Long prides herself in being the most observant person when it comes to love, to the point where she could even easily tell the moment someone has ‘the case of the butterflies’ by just looking at their face. Whenever I ask how she does it, she always tells me that love is ultimately in the subtle details…_ **

* * *

“Alright, now that you got the correct colours together, you simply put them in here and put the fabric softener and detergent. Detergent in here and softener in here.”

“Ah… what if I change the weight of the clothes or even the type of detergent.”

“Just check the measurements and directions on the box and bottle.”

Weiss continued to explain Ruby the laundry, how to decide the settings and so forth.

After a few minutes, the two looked at ‘Ol Bessie’ the washing machine in triumph as they both watched it start up and rock slightly from its old age, not being able to keep up quietly with the spins of the clothes inside.

Weiss scratched her head and awkwardly stated, “I guess we now just hope nothing explodes.”

Ruby nervously chuckled as she too noticed the washing machine probably should be retired really soon.

After returning the bottle of fabric softener and washing detergent back on their proper places on the shelf above the machine, Ruby and Weiss exited the laundry room and both plopped onto the seats in the living room, Ruby on the large beanbag and Weiss on to the couch beside it.

Ruby stretched her hands over her head, “Mmh, so… laundry… cooking… some of my cleaning supplies… anything else?”

Weiss looked up to the ceiling for a moment in thought, “… I think we covered all the basics. And to your credit, you are not _completely_ hopeless.”

Ruby let out a sarcastic laugh, “Ah, appreciate the thought Weiss.”

Weiss throat bubbled out a chuckle as she let her hands fall to the side, the palm of her left hand feeling the wrapping of a package she had left on Ruby’s couch earlier. She tucked the gift under her arm and stood up, rubbing her hands together, “You know, the weather is getting cold around here…”

Ruby let her hands drop and looked curiously up at Weiss, “Hm?”

Weiss cheeks became dusted with a light pink blush, “… Just move over you dolt.”

Ruby raised an eyebrow as she shuffled to the side, a blush also ghosting upon her cheeks when Weiss delicately placed herself beside her. Due to the nature of the beanbag, they caved together in the middle, now shoulder to shoulder.

There was a beat of silence that passed before Weiss spoke up, “That washing machine of yours… it is quite old. Ancient I might add.”

“Yep, I guess ‘Ol Bessie’ is really too old now.”

Weiss chuckled, “Ah, Yang and her silly nicknames for things… maybe we should go out and get a new washing machine for you.”

Ruby giggled at Weiss remark about Yang as she began to agree, “Yeah, we definitely-”

The brunette stopped halfway in her sentence before she turned to face Weiss, “W… we? Like both of us… shopping for a new washing machine…” Ruby cleared her throat, “It’s a nice thought Weiss but I don’t think I could afford one right now, I’ve gotta save up a bit more and I’ll get it.”

Weiss shook her head, “Nonsense, I would of course be getting that washing machine for you.”

Ruby stuttered, “W… what?! No Weiss, that is too much.”

“It really is not Ruby… I think we both know that I am on the… rich side of the social ladder.”

“Nice of you to remind me of that Weiss.”

“Ruby…” Weiss turned to face Ruby, her hands clutching onto the wrapped package on her lap, “I… I don’t think you have realised it but, you have done a lot for me in the past months of me adjusting here and having someone to talk to… so let me just do this for you.”

Ruby warily looked at Weiss, “Hm… I’m not agreeing still but we can go have a look so I can see which model I should aim for. Maybe later today?”

Weiss smiled, “Alright sounds like a fine plan…” After another moment of comfortable silence, she felt her face bloom red as her attention was drawn back to the wrapped object in her lap. “Um… actually… Since it is quite cold outside… I think you should wear this when we go out later then.”

She took the gift and pushed it into Ruby’s arms, looking off to the side shyly as Ruby began to inspect the gift.

Ruby’s palms began to sweat slightly as she held a gift that she could not believe she was getting from Weiss… “Oh… thank you Weiss.” She said in an uncharacteristically meek voice.

Weiss zapped her attention back to Ruby at the reaction.

Ruby looked up at that moment as they then locked eyes, both looking away as they blushed.

“Um… I’m gonna open it now.”

The living room was filled with sounds of wrapping paper being ripped slowly apart, as the sound of a soft fabric unfurling accompanied Ruby’s gasp.

“It’s… It’s so soft!” Ruby said, as her thumb glided over the knitted scarf. Her mouth gasping in awe she admired the article of clothing. It was knitted with the softest material she ever felt, the wool going through gradients of white of red, the light pink in between peeking in some spots of the scarf. However, at the end corner of one side of the scarf, there was an intricate red rose sown into the scarf, a white thread outlining it to allow the rose to stand out.

“Weiss… it’s beautiful.” Her thumb brushed over the rose, “Did… did you make this?”

Weiss was suddenly fiddling with her long untied white hair, a lock being twirled around her left hand’s index finger, “P… possibly.” She then instinctively hid her fingers, in which a few were patched with Band-Aids.

Ruby eyed the movement from the corner of her eye. Weiss then cleared her throat to move her friend’s attention from her hands, “So… I’m hoping you… like it?”

Ruby beamed, “Of course I do!” Her mouth morphed into a grin as she looked down at the scarf, her heart slowly starting to speed up.

With excitement and gratitude in her veins, she let out a squeal under her breath and took Weiss into her arms, bringing the girl into a strong and warm hug, “I absolutely love it Weiss, you are amazing.”

* * *

“They were pretty hush-hush about it, so I really did not know what I was exactly getting myself into.” Yang started, her voice relaying through the speakers of Ruby’s laptop.

It was later in the day and Ruby was on her bed as she video called her sister and Blake through Facetime.

“Is there anything about the show you can tell us, sis?” Ruby questioned excitedly, Yang chuckling and Blake rolled her eyes in amusement through the pixilation of the screen.

“Like I mentioned before, I can’t reveal or say anything! You’ll just have to watch the show when it comes out next year.”

Ruby grumbled in disappointment as Blake asked another question, “How have they been treating you then?”

Yang’s image looked up briefly in thought, “Well, firstly they are being fair and are some of the nicest people on the planet.” She gave a grin at the thought. “Also, since it was my first HUGE acting job, the stars who are playing the main characters have been giving me tips and advice. It’s like one big family!”

“That great Yang!” Ruby chirped.

“Wait a moment.” Blake added, “HUGE acting job. You mention it being your ‘breakout’ role but what is the… nature of your role exactly? Minus the spoilers you have to hold back.”

“Um… Okay, I guess if I’m pretty vague I can talk about it.” Yang said after pondering of the question with a tapping of her chin, “So… right now we are filming the pilot of the series, so I thought that I was gonna be some one-off character that was only relevant in the main characters introductions and stuff… But it turns out that I apparently am going to be a reoccurring character! I was always wondering why my agent was so ecstatic about this role, so now I know.”

“Hold on.” Ruby interrupted with her eyes gleaming, “So this role… can be possibly permanent for the time being?”

There was a slight delay, as Yang received the question. However, once she did, she wore a huge grin on her face, “Depending on the fate of the character and the entire series, yes… I might be on this show for the long run! Well until it ends of course.”

Blake and Ruby both cheered in delight.

As their cheers died down, Yang looked hesitantly towards the camera, “So… are you okay with this Ruby? You do know that I won’t always be back there now since I’ve got to travel overseas much more.”

Ruby smiled and gave a gentle nod, “It’s all fine Yang, I don’t want to be in the way of your dreams. Anyways, I will say that you going overseas for the time being has gotten me to even spend more time with Weiss!”

Yang’s mouth grew into a smirk as she leaned into the arm of her chair, “Oh, is Ruby getting her game on now that her big sister is no longer there.”

Ruby blushed red, “N-no! Nothing like that! I just like hanging out with her as usual! Yeah, I got a crush but I’m not going after her while she is a relationship.”

Yang hummed suspiciously as she gestured to the plushies behind Ruby on her windowsill, “Then what about those two?”

Ruby looked back to see the Feebas plushie and Kirby plushie sitting side by side with the back of Weiss’ house as the backdrop through the window. She looked back at Yang with a meek smile, “Those two are there so I can live my crush vicariously through their closeness.”

Yang groaned as she reeled back, Ruby no longer being defensive about her crush had resulted in all the teasing fun being taken out as the brunette went along with it.

Blake took over from Yang’s groaning, “Speaking of which, I saw you and Weiss spent the day together, I was wondering how it went.”

Yang perked up to at least hear how Ruby’s day went whilst the younger sister’s eyes bulged from her head, “Wait what? How did you know?”

“I saw you guys at the shops a few hours ago.”

“Oh, was my little sister on a date?”

“Shut up Yang.”

“Oh, there was a little bite in her tone.”

Ruby rolled her eyes at her sister’s antics, “New York seems to not have changed you.” She let the comment simmer for a moment before she gave into the curious stares of Blake, in which Yang also formed.

“So… what has been happening over the past few days is that Weiss has been teaching me how to maintain myself. Ya know, without needing to rely on Yang… so I’ve been living more independently recently.”

Blake let out a small clap and cheered as Yang let out a ‘whoop’ in delight, “Yeah Ruby! That’s great” The older sister exclaimed, “I’m so happy you are taking control of your life! I was slightly worried that you won’t survive.”

Ruby arched an eyebrow, “Slightly?”

Yang nervously laughed, “Ah… I made Blake promise to keep an eye of you…”

“Yang!”

“Hey, don’t mind me! Blake didn’t even keep up her end of the bargain.”

Blake shrugged, “I didn’t really need to, I knew Weiss would make sure Ruby would be fine.”

Yang eyed Blake’s side of the screen, “Hmmm… You are right. But more importantly, what have you two been up to then?” She directed to her sister.

Ruby played with the end of the ends of the scarf she wore around her neck as she started, “So, she started by giving me cooking lessons… in which she says I’m actually catching on pretty quickly. And then she’s been teaching me how to properly separate colours and cool and neat tricks to clean and organize the house. Oh yeah, by the way I stole one of your shelves from your house… Gosh, I didn’t even know Weiss had some sort of rebellious side like that. But she did justify herself as it was in reason and you were my sister so everything cancelled out? But anyways she even gave me this scarf! Gosh she made it herself and everything. Like, I saw her trying to hid her fingers with the Band Aids but I saw and knew she tried so hard! But then after that Weiss…”

As Ruby started to ramble about her day and Weiss, Yang and Blake both glanced at each other’s screens on their own computers. Blake raised an eyebrow in the predicament of the situation as Yang made kissy faces to the camera.

“And then, like, behind my back she bought that washing machine.”

“Hold on a second sis! She bought you a washing machine!”

Ruby awkwardly scratched the back of her head, “Uh, I told her it was all fine and she initially agreed to but… after we went and talked to all the salesclerks and chose a model, she went ahead and bought it.”

Yang mouth just dropped as Blake’s eyes widened, “So… what are you going to do about it?”

Ruby twiddled her thumbs, “Well, she insisted so much, so I just decided to keep it. And about the payment… she just said it would be nice to spend more time together.”

Yang’s expression then morphed into one of sly teasing, “Ah, so it seems that Weiss has got the game instead.”

“Yang!”

“Wait Ruby, I just realised you mentioned that you stole the shelves? I didn’t see you at the house.”

“Well, me and Weiss thought it would be fun to be all sneaky and that.”

“Weiss and fun? Once you save the ice princess from the tower, I guess she does thaw out.”

“No Yang, I think Ruby is just influencing her too much… is it bad that I’m not concerned that you basically broke into the house?”

“Blake, didn’t you forget that I have the keys-”

Ruby was interrupted by her mobile phone as she heard its chime from her bedside table, “Uh… wait a minute guys…”

Ruby looked at the text message she received, letting out an ‘eep’ in surprise as her she grew a bashful smile on her face. After replying to the text, she moved back to her laptop in which Yang reacted.

“Oh, someone’s got a lovesick smile on her face. Did Weiss text you?”

Ruby rolled her eyes as she brought the laptop from her bed and placed it on her table in the room. Ignoring Yang’s question, she puffed up her cheek to stifle her grin, “As…as a matter of fact, it was. And she just invited me over for dinner so I’m going to leave now.”

“I’ll see you tomorrow Ruby.”

“Alright sis, bye! Hope you have sweet dreams!”

“I’ll see you too Blake. And I’ll talk to ya later Yang.” Ruby said as she waved to the camera and ended her part of the call.

However, Yang and Blake were still in the video chat…

* * *

Once Ruby left, the two waited a few moments before they both started to react to all the information that helped link the dots in their heads. Yang started gasping loudly while she messed with her hair, trying to comprehend the facts (such as the new washing machine). Blake on the other hand had her had a quieter reaction as she looked down and nodded blankly as she too tried to absorb the information.

After a minute passed, they both calmed down considerably.

“So… Weiss made a scarf for Ruby… that’s cute.”

“Yang… Weiss bought her a _washing machine._ That is just commitment, despite how rich she may be.”

“I know Blake, and she’s spent her whole day today with Ruby… If my memory serves me right, she should have work today. She literally took a day off just to help Ruby.”

Yang and Blake paused for a moment, afraid to address the elephant in the room. Yang took the leap.

“So… there’s something there. Like between them…”

Blake cautiously stepped with her words, “… Maybe… Well definitely on Ruby’s side. She still has that unrequited crush on her.”

Yang looked up and pondered, “… Is it really unrequited? Cause despite how ‘friendship starved’ Weiss was in her early life; anyone would know that friends don’t act like that around each other.”

Blake’s eyes widened, “Oh god, it is requited.”

Yang grinned, “I knew this would happen!”

Blake eyes became down casted as she remembered the entirety of the situation between her two friends, “But they don’t know… especially Weiss.”

Yang sighed, “Of course they both don’t know, they may as well be living in a fanfiction.”

“Mhmmm… but isn’t this getting more delicate. If they don’t handle this right, I don’t know what would happen.”

“Ugh.” Yang stated flailed on her bed for a moment before stilling. “Well, we gotta see where this goes then.”

“Yang… this could really end badly if they don’t handle this right… don’t forget it’s not just Weiss and Ruby in the picture… but also Neptune.”

Yang hummed, as her eyebrows furrowed in concern, “Blake… can you just watch and check over them, in case they do anything stupid.”

Blake rolled her eyes as she began folding the sleeves of her jumper in and out, “If you ask me this whole situation is stupid. A little honestly can go a long way, and if you ask me none of them are being honest with what they feel.”

“Honest?” Yang snorted, “More like they are just actively trying to avoid the elephant in the room.”

“Surely Weiss wouldn’t be… that dense, would she?”

“I’m pretty sure she just has no clue, she’s too friend starved for her own good.”

They both sat in another silence, before Blake sighed once more, “Alright, I’ll be sure to keep an eye on them.”

“And update me?”

“Of course.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! 
> 
> Just wanting to let you know that all the re-uploads are finally up! From here on out it is all new chapters and content! 
> 
> ALSO! Thanks for keeping up and reading! I'll hope you all enjoy the new content!!! See you tomorrow!!!


	22. Green Eyed

* * *

**_Love can bring jealousy. This green-eyed lesson of love was taught by Blake Belladonna, who would always get a glint of amusement in her eye whenever she would tell this story to me…_ **

* * *

Weiss stretched her arms as she finished putting away the dishes from lunch into the dishwasher. She turned her body slightly towards Ruby as the girl came lumbering inside, shutting the sliding door behind her.

Weiss sighed as she rounded the kitchen and sat on the couch beside Ruby, “How you ever manage to leap over that fence with ease with a full stomach, I’ll never know.”

Ruby rested her head on the armrest of the chair facing the television and pushed herself comfortably to lie down on the chair while facing Weiss, “A lot of skill Weiss… A lot of skill.” Ruby stated before she let out a yawn.

“Of course, you are feeling tired now.”

“Especially after that amazing lunch you magicked up together.”

Weiss rolled her eyes, “I don’t just use ‘magic’.” The alabaster girl a smug glint in her eyes, “It just takes a lot of skill.”

The two paused for a moment, before they shared a laugh. As their laughs slowly subsided, Weiss reached for the remote on the coffee table, her hand gently brushing against the bell that lay beside the control remote. Weiss gave out a soft smile and took the bell into her hands, shaking it to chime throughout the house.

“Cakes! I got your favourite toy.”

After a minute, with no sound of response or acknowledgement that the feline usually gave when it came to the bell, Ruby lifted up her head in question, “Cakes? Hm… maybe she’s asleep?”

Weiss hummed, “If she was asleep upstairs she wouldn’t answer, but she always sleeps down here if I’m not in my room… and usually she would jump at this bell even if she’s asleep.”

Weiss got up and began to walk around the house; softly calling for her animal companion’s name as she looked in the normal places where she’ll curl up and hide.

She paces back into the living, “Ruby… I don’t know where Cakes is.”

Ruby slowly sat watch, as Weiss was beginning to spiral.

“I don’t know where she is… Where is she! I… what did I do? I was so careful to make sure she liked living here…” Weiss started to play with her hair out of fear and then slowly it evolved into violet tugging.

Ruby rushed up and grabbed Weiss’ arms and gently pulled it down to stop the female from pulling all her hair out.

“Weiss… look at me.”

Weiss’ breathing began to stop hyperventilating and slowed down to a calmer pace.

“Okay… what do you want to do next?”

Weiss paused for a moment as she collected all her thoughts together, “I checked around the house… and she’s not here. Must mean she’s outside? Wait… how did she get outside?”

Ruby watched her murmur to herself, as she still clutched onto her arms to ground her.

Then it hit Ruby, “Uh… I… may have…”

Weiss stopped and looked at Ruby with an arched eyebrow.

“I… may have left the back… door open when I quickly went to go to my backyard…”

Weiss’ eyes narrowed, “What?”

“Um… she might have… wandered outside?”

“Ruby…”

The brunette giggled nervously as Weiss gave her the evil eye. Then, the older girl sighed as she massaged her temples with her index and thumb, “I’ll deal with you later… let’s just find Cakes first.”

* * *

It’s been half an hour since Cakes has been declared missing and both of the women were starting to get sore throats from calling out the feline’s name too many times.

“She… she couldn’t have gone far.”

“Cakes, come out girl!” Weiss was going to continue to yell before she felt her phone vibrate from her pocket. She paused in her steps and pulled out her phone, which displayed Blake’s contact.

“… Hello? Blake we’re kind of busy right now so you can tell me your book suggestion later…”

Ruby stood up from a bush she was searching at the mention of her friend’s name.

Weiss continued, “… Yeah, how did you know? … Are we that loud? Actually, never mind that, I still need to find Cakes so if you promptly tell me what was so important for me to know right now…”

At that question Weiss posed; her phone rang once with an incoming message that contained the answer. Weiss took a glance at the screen and sighed in relief. She brought the phone back to her ear, “Alright, I’ll see you there.”

“What’s up with Blake?”

Weiss let out a tired but relieved smile, “It’s Cakes! She found cakes.”

* * *

Blake opened the door to Yang’s house and greeted her two other visitors of the day, “Hey you two.”

“Hello Blake, so where’s Cakes?” Weiss asked, a calm facade on her face to mask the little uneasiness whirling from deep within her gut.

“She’s basking by the window. Why don’t you two come in and I’ll make you some tea.”

Ruby smiled widely and stepped inside, “Yes please!”

As the brunette eagerly followed Blake into the kitchen, Weiss let herself in and closed the door behind her. Her eyes danced from window to window until her eyes landed on the white creature on the windowsill that was situated in between two shelves full of many titles. Weiss glared at Cakes as she approached the feline who was lounging by the warmth of the sun that shone through the glass, without a care in the world.

She quietly cleared her throat as she looked down at the cat that roused from the sound and slowly opened her eyes from her catnap.

As Cakes slowly woke up and gained consciousness, she recognized the scent and looked up at her owner in delight. She meowed in relief as she leaped from her spot by the window and leapt into Weiss arms.

The alabaster woman could no longer hold her motherly glare anymore as she welcomed her pet into an embrace and cradled her like a baby, “Aw, it’s alright… I’m here girl.” She cooed as the Turkish Angora cat began to purr in contentment, nuzzling herself into Weiss’ arms.

Blake’s head poked out from the kitchen and smiled at the sight, “Why don’t you and Ruby sit on the couch, just let me get the tea and biscuits ready.”

“But I can help!” Ruby echoed from the kitchen.

“Even if Weiss is teaching you, I don’t trust you just yet.”

Weiss gingerly sat on the couch, as she amusedly rolled her eyes at the brunette who grumbled all her way to the couch and plopped beside Weiss.

After Ruby’s last huff, she turned to Weiss and focused on feline on her lap.

“Well, at least you found Cakes… I thought you mentioned her being obedient and trained to only stay in the backyard.”

Weiss gave Ruby the evil eye, as Cakes seemingly also did the same, “Technically, I’m in the middle of training her so she has not got it down quite yet, however… someone decided to break that chain of training I had by leaving the door open.”

“In my defence I thought she was not going to run away.”

“Cats are curious by nature.”

“Weiss is right Ruby.” Blake added as she placed down a tray with biscuits and tea. She poured two cups with tea and placed then off the tray and in front of the two women on the table, “Let them cool down a bit before you dig in.”

Ruby’s eyes lightened up at the sight of the varieties of biscuits that Blake managed to fit on a plate, “Lemme just dig into this instead!”

Weiss leaned back into the couch, watching Ruby softly as the brunette picked a hand full of biscuits. Ruby popped one into her mouth with a smile, “Sho good.”

Weiss then felt the warmth on her lap move off. She faced her focus down to the white fluffy tail walk away extended to the roof with a hook. The alabaster girl crossed her legs and leaned on her left hand as she watched her feline companion walk to Blake and purred against her arm.

“Wow, she’s really enamoured with you.”

Blake nodded as she reached to Cakes with her left hand and scratched the cat underneath her chin, “Yeah… I guess she is.”

Ruby hummed as she swallowed her biscuit and proceeded to elaborate, “Blake has for some reason has a way with animals.”

“I wouldn’t say that.” Blake said.

“Um, yes you do. You basically tame every animal you come across. That is probably why I grew a crush on you a while ago. You reminded me of a Disney princess.”

“Oh, Yang used to mention that frequently?” Weiss said with a surprised tone. “But with the way she was so blasé about it, must not be much of anything in the end.”

Ruby awkwardly chuckled as she scratched the back of her hand, “Ah yeah… it was like only a little crush on Blake.”

Blake laughed with mirth, “A little? According to my memory it was quite a puppy love one.”

Weiss perked at that statement, “Puppy love?” This was not what she was expecting at all. Yang’s stories were always played for laughs, never anything too serious, “That’s… quite the description.”

Ruby puffed her cheeks, “Well, to be fair, I apparently had a crush on you for a while without even knowing I had one.”

“How long?” Weiss asked.

“Hmm… according to Yang I had it since I was young… when we first met Blake. But I only realized it in high school when she got together with a long-time friend of hers.”

Blake frowned at the mention of her ex, “I’d rather we not mention him.”

“… What exactly was it that you liked about Blake?” Weiss questioned.

Blake looked quizzically at Weiss, who wore a conflicted expression on her face.

Ruby looked up to ceiling as she tapped her chin in thought, “Hm… back then…” Her head zipped down again to focus on the bookworm on the opposing couch, “You won’t mind me talking about this?”

Blake amusedly picked up her teacup, cooling it a bit down before she took a sip, “If it’s being awkward that you are asking about, I won’t mind. Besides… I’m curious to find out what you liked about me.”

“Well, this crush is kinda generic… so don’t call me out on it.”

“I won’t.” Blake said.

“Alright… then… back then, I guess it was all your mysterious charm that really, uh, captured me? I really also thought you were pretty and your way with animals, except Zwei, reminded me of a Disney princess… I guess that younger me just wanted to sweep you off your feet like one of those Disney princes…” Ruby then awkwardly chuckled.

“Now that is adorable Ruby.” Blake said with a chuckle.

“Yeah…” Weiss said with a hollow tone. Blake watched the woman from the corner of her eye.

“Hm… now that I think about… for some odd reason I did have a thing for your hair.”

“Really?”

Ruby shrugged her arms, “I really don’t know why… but like everyone has said, the crush no longer lives. It kinda died off when I saw you in a relationship and realized that I actually don’t understand how we both would work in a relationship… Like, I can only ever see you as being one of my best friends.”

Blake smiled, “That is really a sweet sentiment. Ruby.”

“Ah, thanks Blake.” The brunette grinned. However, her phone rang at that moment and she looked towards the caller, “Ah! I have to take this guys, I’ll go outside for a moment.”

With that the brunette scurried outside through the front door.

Now that Ruby was no longer there, Blake turned and focused on Weiss, who was now fiddling with her hair… she was inspecting it.

“What is it you are muttering about Weiss.”

“Do… do you think my hair is silky?”

Blake quirked a brow as she placed her teacup down, “Weiss… you can talk to me if you want to.”

Weiss looked up to Blake, “It’s just… Ah… what is it…” Weiss started muttering to herself in confusion.

“Weiss… are you jealous?”

Weiss froze, before she let go of her hair and sassily flicked it behind her shoulder, “Don’t… don’t be absurd! I am not jealous. Why would I be jealous? I am straight just so you know.”

“Um… you also have Neptune as well…” Blake added, wondering why Weiss would defend her sexuality.

“Of course! I have a boyfriend too! So, I can’t be jealous! I’m already in a relationship so I shouldn’t be jealous.”

“Uh Weiss… if you want to-”

“Ah, I finished the call! My boss was just asking about a surprising thing for one of my co-workers.” She exclaimed at the entrance of the door.

Weiss then suddenly stood up and picked up Cakes from Blake’s side. The cat protested lightly before settling in the woman’s arms, “Actually, Ruby and I have some things to attend to.”

“Well, we were just binge watching a show.”

“Well, I also had to talk to her about the flowers she wanted to plant in her backyard.”

Weiss then walked up to Ruby and grabbed her arm, “Thank you for the hospitality Blake but we must be going.”

As Weiss dragged Ruby out, she heard the brunette call out a farewell as she closed the door behind her.

Blake sat on her couch, as she finished her tea and placed the cup down on the saucer. She observed the two teacups still full of tea.

“Well, this is interesting… Yang’s going to get a kick out of this.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! Sorry I didn't update yesterday, we were having power problems and I was out of wifi for a bit... also by the time it came back early in the morning, I was going to update and realised I accidentally drew for chapter 23 😅 SO, today there will be two updates :D I'll update the other one a bit later so there is a gap, but other than that enjoy :D


	23. Flirtatious Flowers

* * *

**_Ruby Rose told me that love is subconsciously flirtatious. She would always get red with embarrassment from her awkward attempts at flirting however, she would always grin at Weiss Schnee’s apparent subconscious flirting. Ruby Rose always mentions how remembering some memories with this ‘flirting’ reminded her how annoyed she would get as Weiss Schnee was completely oblivious to the emotions, she was making her friend feel…_ **

* * *

Weiss and Ruby looked upon the gazebo that was installed into the left corner of Ruby’s backyard a few days ago. They both tilted their head to the side…

“The table is kinda not in the middle.”

“It does seem off centre.”

The two women nodded to each other and both pushed the table towards the left, taking another step back to observe the new additions to the backyard.

The rectangular gazebo was made out of wood, painted white with a privacy wall in the back towards the side of Weiss’ backyard that extended in a right angle to block out the Ruby’s neighbour. Underneath the roof of the gazebo, two outdoor couches sat side by side, a wooden coffee table situated in the middle of the structure. The whole gazebo was elevated by a platform of wood that separated the whole gazebo from the pergola that gave shade to the entrances back to the house, stepping stones embedded into the grass providing a path from the tiled floor of the pergola.

Ruby hopped on the spot with a squeal, “It’s all coming together!!!! Now I wanna get those fairy lights, get the barbecue grill at Yang’s and just celebrate!!”

As Ruby spun around in delight, Weiss rolled her eyes and looked over the backyard, “Maybe we can get some fairy lights later… right now I think we should get those flowers to spruce up the backyard.”

Ruby, hyped on happiness bounced in a circle and looked back at Weiss with a sly look, “Yeah… get those flowers huh?”

Weiss crossed her arms and looked away, “Of course, they are the next part of the list for this backyard.”

Ruby giggled at Weiss’ defensiveness as she followed her crush out of the backyard.

* * *

“Ruby! They have Lilies! Oh, look at how elegant and beautiful they are.” Weiss exclaimed as they entered the flower store.

Ruby followed in meekly. She shyly glanced at the man at the registered who just smiled good-naturedly back at the brunette, which morphed into an amused smile at her white-haired companion. Ruby just awkwardly focused on Weiss as she moved over her overeager friend.

Ruby cleared her throat, “So… are those going in my garden?”

Weiss shook her head as she faced towards, “No, I think these flowers aren’t exactly your style… I have a list of flowers that you can choose from. I personally have prior experience with most of them so I can teach you some tips and tricks in caring for them properly.”

“Alright… so where is this list?”

“Well I-”

“Weiss! It is so nice to see you again.”

A strong voice interrupted Weiss’ sentence, as the two friends focus their attention to the man who was originally behind the counter.

“Mr. Port! It’s lovely to be here again.”

Mr. Port chuckled wholeheartedly through his moustache, “Well of course! Being around flowers is your element, isn’t it. Actually, that reminds me of how I met…”

Ruby smiled awkwardly as the man went off into a tangent.

“I’ve learnt just to smile and nod. But he does have some heart-warming stories at times.” Weiss whispered before she rose her voice to be heard over the old man’s booming voice.

“Mr. Port I assume it’s a wonderful story sir, but this is… the girl I talked about earlier.”

The man furrowed his brows as he inspected Ruby’s stature, “Oh! You must be Ruby Rose! Splendid name if you ask me! Weiss talks a lot about you.”

Ruby’s cheeks glowed a warm pink, “She… she does?”

“ANYWAYS! May we leave the story for another time and go to thing I planned earlier.”

Mr. Port’s eyebrows shot up as he wore a grin, “Of course Weiss!”

He gestured for the girls to follow behind me as he made his way to a door by the register.

“Again, thanks for helping with this Mr. Port.”

“It is absolutely no problem Weiss! You are basically the only person who is keeping this entire store afloat!”

“Nonsense! You grow such beautiful flowers; I’ve seen people trickle in and out of this store.”

“Well it must be how you advertise this store with such high praise! Anyways, the room is ready. I’ll be at the register.”

With a soft click of the door closing behind them, Ruby gawked at the scene before her.

She and Weiss were now in a room that was lit up warmly and brightly with sunlight streaming through the windows and skylights. The walls of the room were filled with metal shelves were potted plants of grew. In the middle of the room, there was large table with many types of potted flowers all lined up neatly.

Weiss headed towards the other end of the room and allowed her hand to run across the couch that had a small shelf full of books and magazines, “This is the store’s sun room and also green house. Usually, when I finish early at work or just want to the leave the building, I come here and do work or read in this room. Mr. Port says that at least the room is being used for more than just the plants.”

She moved over to table and waved her hands towards the flowers on the table, “I asked Mr. Port earlier to get out some of the flowers I had on my list on to the table.”

Her eyes looked over a note that Mr. Port had left at the end of the table.

“It seems that he also added some flowers that he said you might like and be easy to manage. You can take your pick.”

Ruby walked over to the plants and looked over them, “Hm…”

She noticed some flowers that she has seen in Weiss’ garden, and also some other ones that she has never seen before. She holds up a bush of leaves with stems of pink flowers sticking out of it, “What are these ones?”

“They are geraniums. The pink kind specifically translates to love spells.”

“L-love spells?! Um… why is it here?”

Weiss shrugged, “Those were on my list, I guess Mr. Port put them there.”

“Okay…. Oh. Wait, do you know the meanings of all these flowers?”

“Well of course! Mr. Port talks non-stop about them so eventually I became interested and learnt all about them.”

Ruby points towards an orange flower.

“What’s that one?”

“An Orange Harlequin Flower. It means laughter at trouble.”

“Oh!” Light giggles echoed through the room, “That sounds like Yang!” She gingerly touched the petals, “The yellow reminds me of Yang’s hair.”

Ruby then giddily looked around the room before settling on another flower.

“What about this one?” The brunette held up a black flower from its pot.

“A Black Pansy… if I am correct that one should be thoughtfulness, modesty…” Weiss paused for a moment as she tapped her chin, “And it can attract love to anyone who carries it.”

Ruby then a grew a fond look in her eyes, chuckling lightly as she brought the flower down to her level, “That sure does sound like Blake… you know, once she got these thoughtful gifts and looking back… I always swooned at them.” Giggling as she brought the pot beside the Orange Harlequin and moved them to a separate space.

Weiss, for some reason, flinched at her remark. She shook her head in confusion to herself and instead busied herself with watching movements, before she cleared her throat, “Anyways!”

Ruby jumped at her sudden volume.

“What other flowers and plants do you want then?”

Ruby eyeballed all the other flowers and pulled out of few bushes and plants that piqued her interest, Weiss giving intel and information on each flower to help the brunette decide…

* * *

After a while there was a substantial amount of plants and flowers on side of the table.

“Well it looks like you picked out the new garden. You better listen to my instructions, so they don’t become a graveyard like you sister’s.”

Weiss paused for a comment from her friend, to only find the gamer to be huddled around one last specific flower, before she lugged the pot into her hands and brought it over to Weiss.

“What about these?”

Weiss looked down at the white multi-layered flowers, the sheer number of petals creating an intricate and complex pattern on the plant’s face.

“White Dahlias? They are a bit of a hard plant; it seems very easy but there is a lot of waiting and patience needed for this flower… If you want them in the backyard sure…”

“No, I mean what do they mean?”

Weiss pondered for a moment, drawing the appropriate information out of her head before relaying to Ruby.

“They mean dignity and elegance. They are quite a regal looking flower.”

“Hmmm…” Ruby looked over the pot and murmured an audible comment, “Speak for yourself…”

“What?”

“I mean! They are such a majestic flower! Just like you! I’m gonna add this one too.” Ruby quickly said, muttering ‘stupid’ to herself as she placed the flower amongst the bunch of other plants.

Weiss cheeks lit with a pink hue, “Oh, uh… thank you Ruby… Oh wait!” She then picked one last flower and put it beside the white dahlia, “We cannot forget this one.”

Ruby shook herself out of her muttering and looked at the final flower, which appeared to be the stereotypical red rose. Ruby blushed, “Oh… thanks Weiss!”

The girls then just stared at the amount of plants that they had picked out. They both leaned to one side and glanced at the other bigger plants that they had chosen and left on the flower so there was enough room.

“How do you feel Ruby?”

“O… overwhelmed?”

“Hm… okay maybe we do have to take some of those plants out.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! 
> 
> Double updates 👀
> 
> I'm very happy that you are enjoying the new content! With people continuing their theories on both sites:D
> 
> Anyways, it's been a busy day, and I'll see you all tomorrow!


	24. The Third Wheel

* * *

**_Neptune Vasilias recounts most of his memories with feelings of remorse. He says he feels disgusted at how he was complacent and disregarded other people’s feelings in spite of his own, to feel secure about his failing relationship with Weiss Schnee. He remembers Ruby’s face falling every time she saw them together, but despite it all that she still wore a pleasant smile to not arouse suspicion. And of course, at the time he was not entirely sure that there was something between the two friends. But looking back, his heart wrenches through the pain Ruby must of went through as her love watched silently._ **

* * *

Ruby happily tapped the keys on the keyboard as she begun to upload her newest YouTube video onto her channel. Stretching her arms after being hunched over for a few hours, she watched as downloading bar slowly ebbed its way to being finished. Her eyes then gazed upon the thumbnail she had uploaded. It featured an image of her and Weiss both holding controllers as the background displayed a screenshot of the game ‘Overcooked.’ In the image Ruby seemed to be laughing her heart out as Weiss pointed accusingly to the side of the screen.

**Ring!!!**

Ruby halted her thoughts as she pulled of her headphones. She paused for a moment, as she wondered who would be at her door during this time in the day.

**Ring!!!**

Ruby muttered to herself as she unfurled from her comfortable position on her chair and left her gaming room.

The bell kept ringing as she quickly walked down the stairs and towards the front door.

As she pulled the door opened it revealed to be none other than Neptune, who was in the process of ringing her bell for the third time.

“Neptune?!” Ruby exclaimed in confusion as she met eyes with the blue-haired man.

“Um… hey Ruby?”

Ruby looked both ways to see if he was accompanied by anyone. He wasn’t.

“Uh… if you are looking for Weiss, she’s not at her house cause she’s at work and-”

Neptune stopped her in the middle of the sentence with a wave of his hands, “I know, I know… that’s why I came over to see you when she was at work. With the every few times I come to visit her, she’s usually with you.”

“Oh… so you wanted to talk to me?”

Neptune nodded, “Yes, I hope you don’t mind… Um… can I come in or should we talk out here?”

Ruby flinched at the realisation, laughing awkwardly as she stepped aside, “Um of course! Come in, we’ll talk in the kitchen.”

* * *

Neptune looked at the surroundings as he set his jacket on the kitchen counter before he took a seat, “This is… cleaner than I thought it would be.”

Ruby’s eyes widened as her voice went abnormally quiet, “Um… thank you?”

Neptune sat up straight and put his hands up, “Oh! My apologies, I didn’t mean to offend you… it’s just that Weiss described this place as… on the messy side when she last talked about you.”

Ruby chuckled as she dragged her chair to the other side of the counter and sat across from Neptune, “Well that sounds like Weiss. I’m guessing that was towards the first half of the year?”

Neptune nodded.

“Well since then Weiss has been helping me get my life together, I’ve really begun to clean up my act… literally.” Ruby mentally facepalmed, Yang’s puns were starting to get to her.

“Anyways… what did you want to talk about? You only ever come around here with Weiss.”

“Yes… Actually, I wanted to talk to you about her.”

Ruby froze up in her seat, “Um… what about her?”

“Well… it is just that I have been struggling to keep in contact with Weiss lately. The only times I ever see her is on our, albeit few, scheduled dates. But every time I try to invite her to come over casually, she… to be blunt I feel as though she’s avoiding me.”

“… really?” Ruby felt disgusted at how she briefly she felt elated at that comment. Thankfully that feeling died quickly as she felt bad for the man.

Neptune nodded, “Yes… which speaking of you are her best friend and I wanted to ask you… if she’s alright? I’m worried if I had done something to make her mad… or she doesn’t want to date me anymore um…”

Ruby simmered in the words for a moment, trying to grasp an appropriate answer to Neptune’s endless worries.

“Uh… can I start off with that… I really can’t and shouldn’t say anything. Like, this is your and Weiss’ relationship, so you probably should talk to her rather than me. It… it’s kinda odd you are asking me since I shouldn’t have any place in this… relationship.”

“I know… it’s just that I’m worried and I don’t know how to approach her about this?”

Ruby shifted uncomfortably in her seat. Neptune seemed genuinely worried, but she did not want to get involved in Weiss and Neptune’s relationship drama… especially with her _personal bias_ with Weiss.

“Please Ruby, all I am is asking for advice, you don’t have to justify or do anything for me and Weiss.”

“Um… I guess if you want something… just, uh… why don’t you just start connecting again with Weiss? It seems that you two have grown a bit distant from each other.”

Neptune satisfied with Ruby’s answer, whipping his phone out and scrolling through various jewellery store websites, “Hm… maybe I should get some earrings that match her eyes…”

Ruby jumped in her chair as she waved around her arms, “Maybe not jewellery!”

Neptune paused his thumbs at Ruby’s outburst.

“Um…” Why was she doing this? “It’s just… Weiss’ tastes have um… changed? No not changed, more as though she’s more honest about herself now. She tends to like small acts of affection. Like this one time I got her this flowery apron and she absolutely loves it! She always uses it when she cooks and…”

As Ruby babbled on about Weiss, Neptune squinted her eyes at the fond tone of Ruby’s voice… It was too fond to be of a friend… He subtlety observed the kitchen. On the fridge he noticed a paper with Weiss familiar cursive lettering, reminding Ruby some food that they had both promised they would try together. The note also was held up by a white flower magnet that he had seen on Weiss’ own fridge in passing.

“So, Weiss likes people to just do sweet things for her. Ya know? With her interests in mind…”

Neptune shook the thought out of his head when Ruby finished her explanation… he was just reading too much into it.

“What would you suggest Weiss would like.”

“How about flowers?” Ruby said as she gazed out of the kitchen’s sliding window doors, and into the backyard garden where some of the plants and flowers have been planted.

“Flowers?”

“Yeah, she’s been obsessed with flowers ever since I met her. She’s even got flowers on a lot of her plates and spoons…”

Neptune watched Ruby as she silently reminisced some moment, he had no idea of. The thought popped back into his mind but, instead of shaking it off he kept it. In the very back of his mind.

“Okay, you got any suggestions?”

* * *

“And could believe the nerve of that man! So, I decided to cull our sponsorship until he really analysed his own actions!”

Weiss ranted to Ruby as they both walked together towards Weiss’ house.

“Well serves him right then.” Ruby agreed as she crossed her arms in mutual disappointed.

“Thanks Ruby… Say, you never told me why we are not going to have dinner at your house as per usual… If you wanted to eat over at my house, you could have at least told me so I could of made sure that I had some ingredients ready.”

“Don’t worry about it Weiss, you’ll understand real soon.”

Weiss arched an eyebrow at her friend’s vague statement.

The pair then suddenly stopped at the front of Weiss’ house, in which Ruby pointed to someone waiting at the outdoor bench in the front of her house.

Weiss followed Ruby’s arm as she eventually landed her gaze on Neptune’s form.

Her boyfriend was all dressed in smart causal, holding up a bouquet of flowers. It was full of different flowers, all of the flowers alluding to love.

Ruby watched as Weiss gasped, and silently walked up to Neptune. The alabaster girl stopped in front of the man, passing off some words that Ruby couldn’t hear from the distance before giving a kiss on her boyfriend’s cheek.

Ruby’s heart ached as she watched Weiss and Neptune happily laugh at some charming comment the blue-haired man said.

Then, the couple both looked towards Ruby and waved to her in a sort of thanks.

Ruby grinned in response before she too put her hand up in a half-hearted wave as she walked away from the couple, to the direction of her house around the bend.

She dared a glance back to couple.

Neptune was absolutely gleaming with happiness. Apparently, all the time away from Weiss had made him extremely talkative, making Weiss laugh in return. Speaking of which, the woman seemed to be enjoying herself as she usually would, politely laugh here and there with the odd laugh turning into that adorable breathless chuckle, that Ruby loved, when Neptune’s joke legitimately was funny. Weiss seemed… alright. Not as animated as she would usually be with Ruby, but she seemed to be having a pleasant time.

Whatever Ruby may feel about Weiss, she could not deny the amount of love that Neptune looked towards Weiss with. It was the type of adoration that must have been developing over a number of years that the two were friends before he presumably asked her out.

Inferiority.

In comparison to Neptune, her love does not amount to time spent and created with Neptune. Therefore, she should not interfere, not let her feelings get in the way of this. Weiss deserved a lot of love and Neptune seems to have a pit of endless love just for her. She would be so much happier with Neptune than her.

Ruby sighed as she turned continued to walk, stuffing her hands into pockets, trying to ignore Weiss’ musical laughter that seemed to carry through the atmosphere.

She really needed to get over her… she needed to stop this infatuation turning into love.

“… I’m such a dolt.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So... hello there everyone 😅
> 
> I was debating for a bit if I should even be posting this chapter today... since it was Valentine's Day and this is just a sad chapter (jk I was still going to post but it did cross my mind)
> 
> So... I hope that you have someone you can cuddle with after this then 😅
> 
> BUT, if you are like me, join me today as I watch sappy romcoms while eating ice cream and wishing for a girlfriend 
> 
> Anyways, I hope you all have a lovely Valentine's Day and I'll see you tomorrow!


	25. A Listening Ear

* * *

**_Weiss Schnee comforted me when I was scared. She told me that in order for me to feel much better, she told me that I needed to feel some love… that being a listening ear. She said that even if I was just scared of an insignificant thing, or even something as important as just telling the truth… she told me that it was a listening ear that love had provided to help._ **

* * *

****

Ruby’s feet were in the air as she laid belly down on one of the outdoor chairs in Weiss’ backyard. Her tongue stuck out as she played an incredibly hard level of Super Mario Brothers on her 3DS.

She was waiting for Weiss to finish watering her plants so they can both go shopping together to buy the ingredients for Ruby’s later afternoon cooking lesson.

As the brunette mashed the buttons aggressively, a light melodic hum interrupted her concentration.

Ruby promptly finished the level and paused briefly at the completion screen. She raised her head to see the source of the melody.

Lo and behold it was Weiss who was happily humming. The white-haired woman was contently watering her plants through the hose, the humming being a pleasant result of the heiress’ contentment.

“Hey Weiss.”

“Hm?” The said woman non-committedly asked as she adjusted the spray from the nozzle to a light trickle of water to hear her friend’s statement.

“I remember running into you a few times when you were almost singing and humming… do you sing for anything?”

Weiss froze for a moment.

“Not anymore.”

Ruby tilted her head in confusion, “What is that supposed to me-”

Ruby’s voice then sputtered in surprise as she flinched at the sudden power that the nozzle of the hose forced all the water out.

* * *

The next day Ruby closed the door to her house as she stepped into the threshold.

“Weiss!! I’m back!!!”

Earlier Ruby and Weiss were recording a video for Ruby’s channel, until Blake had called Ruby over for a quick favour. Apparently, the neighbours of Yang’s house still wanted to throw litter and a concerning number of gnomes in the backyard despite Yang not living there. They did not forgive lightly that’s for sure.

“Weiss?”

Ruby called once again but outside the door of the gaming room. She peered through the open crack and saw that the second chair of the room had been abandoned.

She then felt a draft of wind float from the ceiling. The ceiling door to the attic had seemingly been left ajar by a piece of paper that promptly pointed to the seam of the door with the words ‘here’.

After fumbling around with the ladder and doors, Ruby finally made it up to the roof where she saw Weiss perched at the ledge where she had found Ruby on last time. With a concerned expression, she went back into the attic to grab something before approaching Weiss.

With years of experience, Ruby had oriented herself to slide and stop comfortably on the roof to the right of Weiss.

“Hey Weiss.”

Weiss’ eyes glance briefly to Ruby before it settled back on the horizon, which was turning a purple and pink hue with the sunset.

“Hey.”

Ruby paused for a moment, hoping Weiss would elaborate. She did not.

She observed Weiss’ position, knees to her chest and a slight shiver in her arms.

“Um… it’s cold.”

She draped a blanket over Weiss. She then mimicked her crush’s pose but dropped her right leg to dangle off the ledge of the roof.

Weiss took the blanket and rubbed the soft material between her fingers, “Thanks Ruby…”

She then properly faced Ruby to see the girl without a blanket.

“Goodness… you dolt.”

With pink rosy cheeks she used her right arm to pull Ruby closer so they could share the blanket.

Ruby looked down to her foot dangling off the side to hide her reddening face and to control her heartbeat, “Uh… yeah… thanks Weiss.”

The pair then sat in a comfortable silence, the light breeze filling it with a soft afternoon wind.

“The view is amazing up here. Even if the sun is setting behind us.”

Ruby dared a glance Weiss, who had resumed to staring at the horizon. Ruby followed her gaze to see the usual landscape before her.

From the height of the house you could see over the one-story houses that on this side of the neighbourhood. Various Jacaranda and Crepe Myrtle trees poking out from their position on the streets. Beyond the suburb was a national reserve which the trees’ silhouette had lined the horizon. To wrap up the scenery with a bow, the sky perfectly framed landscape with its warm purple and pink hues. Now that Ruby really thought about it, it was a beautiful view.

“You should renovate this spot or something so we can come out here more often.”

“We? Um… don’t you have a balcony Weiss? It’s even taller than this house, you can see so much from there!”

Weiss tilted her head, so it rested on her arm, “That is true… but it does not frame the view like your roof does.”

She then lifted her head to look at her own house, “And it is not even that tall, only by a slight margin.

Ruby watched as the heiress sighed and focused back on the scene in front of them.

“You know… I think you sound great.”

Weiss froze and turned her head to Ruby, “… what in the world are you talking about?”

Ruby stared at her hands, as she wrung them together in thought, “I… even though I never really heard you sing, your humming is really pretty… I think if you did sing it would sound beautiful.”

“Ruby… thank you. It mean a lot for you to say that… but… it’s…”

Weiss’ soft look from Ruby’s compliment shifted to a glass far away look.

“I… it… it is nonsensical Ruby… I… you would not get it…”

“Well, then you can explain it to me. I know I said I’ll be patient but I’m worried Weiss, and I want to know what’s happening. Help me understand.”

Weiss shifted her head away from Ruby.

“Weiss… I’m sure it’s not stupid, or ‘nonsensical’. If it’s making you this sad then it shouldn’t be stupid.”

Weiss still did not budge.

Ruby sighed.

“I… sorry for pushing again, you can tell me on your own terms or never at all but-”

“An accident.”

“A… a what?”

Weiss kept her focus away from Ruby, but scooted closer so that she basically was curled to Ruby’s side.

“It was… it was an accident. It is nothing serious, I assure you… but it really did scar me.”

Weiss traced her fingers gently over the scar on her face and pulled the blanket closer to her form.

“If you remember, my family… when we were young, they were not the best parents in the world. Of course, no parent was perfect but… they were very… let me say _protective_. But nonetheless they wanted my sister and I to be interested in the more refined hobbies of people in our circle. Therefore, I was taught horse riding and due to the possibility of dangerous mishaps, I always had someone supervising me whenever I took my horse out for a ride. However, after a while of learning, I like to believe I became quite exceptional at horse riding and decided to convince my parent to let me go alone riding one day. I presume I was extremely convincing as my parents relented and allowed me to take my horse Snowbell out alone.”

Weiss paused for a moment, focusing on the sky slowly turning a navy blue and purple.

“Snowbell? After the flower?”

Weiss froze and glanced at Ruby in awe, “Yes… actually yes, she is. You…”

Ruby affectionately knocked her shoulder against Weiss’, “Of course! I care enough about you to search up on flowers I’ve seen you stare for a while at the flower shop.”

Weiss softly sighed.

In the distance, sounds of laughter and dance songs from a party echoed through the air.

Weiss took a breath in, feeling much more comfortable to continue.

“This one time… Ruby, this one and only time I took Snowbell out alone… a huge accident happened. We were riding on a trail that we would usually take, but… goodness I was so ignorant and foolish! When I took a break from riding, I got too close to a cliff edge and fell! The height was not a clear drop, it was more of a slope. I had a few bushes to break my fall. However, from this fall I broke my leg and ended up with many bruises and cuts and-”

Weiss froze, as her hand slowly wandered over to the scar on her left eye.

“I… I… I was completely helpless. Luckily for me, Snowbell was not leashed to a tree, so she spooked and ran back to the stables… possibly alerting the stable hand to the situation… But at that moment I was not sure what was happening. I just yelled. I yelled and screamed. To the point that I got a voice haemorrhage…”

Ruby reached out to put a hand on Weiss’ shoulder, to which the heiress gently brushed her hand away. She was not finished.

“And I know, I got out. I came out alive. And when I looked back, the height was not as bad and not life threatening. But the experience was so… traumatic, and not just to me, to all of the people around me. My parents became extremely protective of me… of all my siblings! And there was a moment where both my sister and brother resented me for that. Klein, he was extremely worried to the point that he was just non-stop cleaning and organising for months while my leg was still healing. For me… for me, I tried to sing. But my voice was… hideous. I knew my voice would come back eventually, but in primary school whenever I talked, I was called hideous and possessed.”

Ruby tilted her head in questioning.

“I… when you have a voice haemorrhage it sounds like you have a double voice. And people thought I was possessed by some sort of demon or ghost.”

“… Primary school students are the worst.”

“… Agreed.”

The soft breeze briefly picked up before settling once again.

“I… everything just culminated and after my parents told me to not sing professionally anymore… I just stopped singing all together… Ever since I moved here, I decided I want to try singing again. Although… it is so much harder than in retrospect.

But… but I want to! I want to sing so bad. I want to feel that emotion… those fluttery feelings when I sung for anyone… when I sung for myself.”

Weiss clutched her hand to her chest, “I… I am trying.”

A brief moment passed.

“Well, for what it’s worth… you must have an amazing voice. And anyone who gets to hear it must be special.”

Weiss smiled, and leaned her shoulder into Ruby’s.

They both contentedly sat there, looking at the deep navy-blue sky as faint music floated through to the women.

Ruby perked… it was a love song.

She grinned as she faced Weiss, “But… for the meantime… you just have to hear…” She cleared her throat as she adjusted her voice into a deep faux egotistical voice, “… my _amazing voice._ ”

Weiss giggled, a hand partially covering her smile, “Goodness Ruby.”

A nasally voice started.

_“I’m all out of love!!!!”_

“No!!!!!! Ruby goodness you dolt!!!”

_“I am so lost without you!!!!”_

“Stop!!!! I know you don’t sound like that!!!”

_“I know you were right-”_

“Ruby!!!”

Laughter and giggles resounded for a while after that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this is going to be probably the last big piece of art I'm going to draw in a bit. I'm gonna get real busy with university and I and I'll probably begin to have more sketchy works, but I still wanna practice so yeah!
> 
> Anyways, I hope you all are having a good Valentine's day, and I'll see you tomorrow (if I don't get too busy)


	26. All in the Interactions

* * *

**_Taiyang Xiao-Long is a very jolly man. He booms with laughter in a fond tone when he recalls the interactions he witnessed between Weiss Schnee and his daughter Ruby Rose… He distinctly remembers first ever witnessing their unspoken dynamic, where they quietly enjoyed each other’s’ presence but… their interactions spoke much louder._ **

* * *

“Apparently he got something for you to.”

Ruby’s scissors snipped through the top of the bag. Putting the utensil down, she grabbed handfuls of ravioli within the bag, placing it into the stainless-steel skimmer which Weiss lowered into the pot of boiling water.

Weiss raised an eyebrow, “For me? But I have never met him.”

“I know. But when he heard that I invited you to the dinner as well he quickly went shopping for souvenirs before going to Narita airport.”

Weiss stayed silent for a moment as she lifted the cooked ravioli and placed it into a bowl fitted with paper towels.

“Weiss! Don’t worry about it! My Dad is just very considerate like that, you don’t have to owe him anything.”

“Um…”

Ruby giggled as watched Weiss place more ravioli into the boiling water, “Would it make you feel better to remind you that you are helping cook dinner for all of us, even if you don’t have to.”

Weiss then smiled as she placed the last ravioli into the boiling water, “Yes. It does make me feel better, thank you very much.”

She gazed upon the boiling water cooking the remaining ravioli as Ruby bent down and fumbled around in the cabinet to get a large pot out for the sauce.

Switching off the flames under the pot, Weiss emptied out the remaining pasta, “It’s just… I do not want him to feel like he has to buy his way into my good side or to impress me somehow…”

“Weiss! He is so not like those evil, shallow… shallow… _witches_ that you thought were friends!”

“… that night with Netflix and KFC really left a mark on you.”

Ruby puffed, “Of course it would.” She stirred the pot of sauce that they both begun to heat up. “But seriously don’t worry about that. My dad just always thinks of others…”

Weiss softened her expression, electing to slide in more chopped tomatoes at that moment, “… always?”

Ruby’s face downtrodden, reality exposing the truth behind her automatic words, “… mostly…” She let out a wistful sigh as she further stirred the sauce whilst Weiss also added the cooked ravioli once more, “You know, Mum used to always say that’s one of the reasons she married dad for.”

“Hm?”

“Yeah… me and Yang had this phase when we were super obsessed with romance and love stories, so we just always asked her and Dad about their story of how they got together and stuff. When we asked her what caught her eye, she said that she loved how considerate Dad was and all the different antics that he would drag his friends into to do something for someone.

“… I guess she took that very consideration with her.”

Weiss glanced to Ruby, leaning into the brunette, touching the side of their foreheads with her, “… When was the last time he came here?”

She sighed, “Just before Christmas… he couldn’t make it to my birthday before then.”

Weiss grumbled.

Ruby lightly shoved Weiss with her shoulder, “But at least he is trying. I mean, he’s here now…”

Weiss let out a sigh, before her form froze up, “Is… is something burning?”

“Hm… it sure does smell like something’s like that… are you sure this ravioli sauce is a good idea?”

“RUBY YOU DOLT IT’S THE GARLIC BREAD!!!”

* * *

Weiss smiled gently at Blake in gratitude, “Thanks for deluxe cat food… you did not have to though.”

Blake shrugged, “Well, now that Cakes constantly likes lounging around my house… I feel like I should at least do something since I now co-parent a cat with you.”

“I still don’t know how both of you got into that situation.” Ruby confusedly said as she closed the front door.

“Well blame Cakes for that. Somehow under my watch she keeps sneaking out to Blake, so we both decided to get her a good quality collar and let her out time to time to visit Blake.”

“Yeah, she seems to only ever go to my house.”

Ruby pouted, “Why doesn’t she come to my house?”

“Ruby, the whole backyard has been marked by Zwei.”

“What?!”

“Before all the renovations to the yard started, there was droppings here and there.”

“Ew!!!! TMI Weiss.”

“What? He’s your dog.”

“Mmmm… I would say he’s Yang’s dog.” Blake chipped in.

Ruby puffed triumphantly, “Yeah, he ain’t here. He’s gladly with Yang all the way in New York.”

Weiss rose an eyebrow, “Is that really something to be happy about?”

“I’m not dwelling on that.” Ruby giggled as she ran into the kitchen to get the remaining food off the kitchen bench and on to the dining table beside it.

Weiss audibly gasped as she chased Ruby, “Don’t forget oven mitts!! We do not want a repeat of last month!”

**Ring!**

“Hey Blake! Can you get the door!”

“No problem!”

Blake turned back to face the door and unlocked it to reveal Taiyang. The blonde man had a bright grin adorning his face, his arms full of gifts and souvenirs from his latest trip to Japan.

“Hey there Blake! It’s been a while since I’ve saw you. Last time I saw you, you had the cutest cat eared hairband.

“Stop exaggerating Tai.”

He let out a deep laugh before he started to deposit some stuff into Blake’s arms.

“I got some of those candies you wrote on the list before I left last year… and I found this sweet inkwell and fountain pen that you could use for writing.”

“Inkwell? Tai, I type up my stories.”

Tai paused for a moment, glazing upon the boxed inkwell in thought, “Well… now that I really think about it, I probably just got too caught up in the sleek design of it.” He shrugged and put it back in her arms, “Well it looks nice and has a real weight to it, you can use it for signatures or letters if you want.”

Taiyang then wore a sly grin as he pulled out a paper brown bag, wrapping a rectangular parcel.

“And… the finale you have been waiting for.”

Blake balanced the candies and inkwell into one arm and flicked the lip of the bag to peer inside.

“… Nin… Ninjas of Love…”

Taiyang awkwardly laughed as he closed the bag for her and put a finger on his lips, gesturing for her to keep her voice down.

“It was immensely awkward for me to buy that. People in that section thought I was a fan and kept asking my thoughts on the manga.” He shivered for a moment. “I don’t even want to know what this series is even about… let’s just leave it at no questions asked.”

“Agreed… but… Uh… thanks Tai. You didn’t have to.”

“Well you wrote it on the list so of course I had to get it. But at least you didn’t ask for much.”

“Much?”

“Well everything but one item left in my arms is all for Ruby.”

Blake’s eyes boggled at the amount of gaming related items were still in the father’s arms.

Taiyang let out a breathless laugh at the woman’s reaction as she stood aside to let the man in.

“Yep, her list had a _whole_ ton of stuff. But I allowed it either way since I did say I was going to make her birthday this year… or some time near it I suppose. Anyways speaking of Ruby, where is she?”

He stopped his questioning at the sight of his daughter talking animatedly with her crush as they both set the table. Weiss and Ruby finally got all the food on the table, the brunette putting her hands on her hips in accomplishment, before she announced that she was going to get the napkins. As the gamer walked away, Weiss’s eyes followed her with a soft look, then focusing back on the table and fixing all the cutlery and placement of some food for it to be precise and symmetrical. Clearly, she did not have the heart to reprimand Ruby about the placement and order this time.

Taiyang grinned as he eagerly deposited the gift one a living room couch before heading to the entry towards the kitchen. He opened his arms.

“Ruby!”

Ruby grinned as wildly as he did and jumped into his arms.

“Dad!”

* * *

Cutlery clanging against white plates filled the air, sounds of laughter filling the atmosphere from Taiyang’s adventures in getting the gifts. Then a comfortable silence ensued as everyone happily ate their dinner.

“So… speaking of, it is finally nice to put a name to a face.”

Weiss politely smiled, “Oh, Ruby’s talked about me?”

“Well of course! She does not stop talking about you-”

Taiyang side eyed his daughter who made a cutting motion with her hand in front of her throat.

“- same with Yang and Blake.”

“Oh? They both mentioned me as well?”

“Weiss, you really mean a lot to them all, of course they would talk about you.”

The alabaster girl turned pink with embarrassment, “Oh, well they all mean a lot to me as well.”

Blake cleared her throat, “You know two of those people are still in the same room as all of you.”

“We weren’t even talking smack. It was all niceties and compliments.” Taiyang stated.

“Who cares! I watched Weiss bake cookies this morning and I’ve been just waiting to get to dessert!”

Taiyang’s eyes blinked at the mention of the dessert, “Dessert time already, wow all my stories are making time go by quick! Which reminds me, before dessert starts, I wanted to give you something Weiss.”

He gave the heiress a civil smile as he started to stand…

“Take the seat Dad! I’ll get it for you!” Ruby exclaimed as she shot up from her chair.

Everyone gave her a sceptical look.

“… You just want to get to look at your gifts now.”

“Pshh, no Weiss! I just want to help my poor Dad who was probably tired from the trip and carrying all of those gifts… which I will add that Blake got hers first… not that it means anything.”

“Yeah… honey no one is believing you.”

“Dad just sit there tight and I’ll go get Weiss’ present!”

Ruby whizzed out of the room and into the darkened living room, the dimmest setting of the overhead lights was flicked on.

“… Blake it’s in a clear box with a sticker that has Weiss’ name on it.”

Blake stood up, “Got it.” She then walked into the living room to make sure that Ruby was not getting too carried away.

The two recipients left at the table both laughed at Ruby’s antics, another silent moment fading in.

“Now… you can come out with it, Weiss.”

“Um… what?” Weiss asked with a confused tilt of the head.

Taiyang sighed, “Weiss, you’ve been giving me silent glares whenever you glanced my way. Sure, those two didn’t noticed but I sure did.”

“Oh… I… Umm…”

“Well, I’m guessing you heard all about me then as well, didn’t you?”

“… Yes, yes I did.”

“Then I absolutely deserve those glares.”

Weiss did a double take, “You… you are agreeing with me?”

Taiyang glanced towards the duo in the living room, it seems that Ruby was too enraptured with her new gifts while Blake was trying to find Weiss’ gift in the large pile.

“I… I love my daughters, and they both do not deserve the way I’ve treated them over the past years… the way I treated our relationship over the past years. There have been consequences, so many. Like, I didn’t even hear about Yang’s acting job until a while after you three were told… she apparently felt that it wasn’t relevant for me… but of course it is! My beautiful daughter Yang may have found her break out role so of course I would be excited and proud.” He calmed down, burying his face into his hands in shame, “I absolutely regret all of my actions leading up to this point of now…”

“Um… are you expecting me to forgive you right now? If so, I believe you are apologising to the wrong person.”

Taiyang shook his head, “No, I’m not asking for anything… but I do know I’ll have to say something to those two… eventually.” He cleared his throat as he clasped his hands together, “In fact… I just want to thank you.”

Weiss was taken aback, “Pardon? I do not understand sir.”

“It’s just… I wasn’t exaggerating earlier Weiss. My daughters and Blake always manage to bring you into conversation, or just outright make the whole call for the night to just fawn over you in front of me.

“And… from the stories I’ve heard, you are a great influence on them. Hell, look at this place right now! I’ve never seen this place cleaner and so organised since Ruby started living here all alone! You’ve really helped her help herself. So… I just wanted to thank you, that for only knowing her for less than a year, you still are here for her… especially since I should’ve been here for her all those years ago.”

Weiss’ eyes widened at the genuine response at the father.

Taiyang on the other hand awkwardly cleared his throat, “Oh, that’s Weiss’ present!”

Coming from the living room, Ruby came in happily brandishing the clear box with a simple white bow on top.

“It was very easy for me to find thanks to the bow!”

Taiyang gave his daughter an odd look before he turned to Blake, “Thank you for finding the present, Blake.”

Blake chuckled as Ruby protested, “Hey! I helped move most of the presents to the side.”

Taiyang took the gift from Ruby’s hands and passed it over the table to Weiss, “Sure… so you could look at your own presents more.”

As Ruby puffed shamefully at the spotlight being briefly put on her.

“Thank you Taiyang.”

Everyone froze for a moment and look towards Weiss. She donned a smile, “For the record, I’m happy to be here with them too.”

Taiyang grinned, as he nodded once in acknowledgement too.

Ruby side-eyed Blake, “I feel like we are missing some context here.”

“Agreed.”

* * *

“It was very nice meeting you Taiyang but, I must go home now. I have work in the morning and if I take one more drink, slightly tipsy would soon evolve into severely intoxicated.” Weiss explained as she stood in front of the open glass slide door of the kitchen.

“Don’t sweat it Weiss, I get it. By the way, it was nice to finally meet you too.”

Weiss smiled before she glanced in Blake’s direction, “Also, I’m letting Cakes out before I leave work tomorrow. She’s probably going to lounge at your house until I finish.”

“I’ll leave a door open then.”

Weiss nodded in understanding as she took a step out, balancing her gift on her right hip while her left hand tried to grip onto the folded step ladder outside under the veranda. She then carefully started to make her way to the end of the backyard, her hands adjusting their grip on the handle with every step.

Ruby came out of the laundry room, in which she had earlier switched on the main light under the veranda to provide Weiss with some light outside. Wiping invisible dust off her jeans, she was met with the knowing look from her father.

“Ruby.”

The look turned into a grin.

“You’ve got it bad.”

Ruby’s face turned red at the insinuation as her voice sputtered, “U-u-uh… Nope! What makes you think that! I… uh… stop it Blake you are not helping! I thought you were trying to convince me out of the whole crush thing! And… I…”

She sighed.

“Fine… maybe... But what I do know is that none of it matters. She’s straight and in a relationship. All I could ever do is wish that something would happen but it wouldn’t…”

Taiyang leaned back on his chair, slowly nodding, “Oh… so it’s like that.”

Ruby’s stuttering stopped as she gave her father a confused look, “Like what?”

Taiyang shrugged.

“Wow dad… just wow…” Ruby then glanced outside to see Weiss was on the step ladder and was struggling to heave herself over the fence with one hand.

“WEISS! Stop!!! At least let me help!!!”

Taiyang and Blake both watched as Ruby bolted out of the house to aid Weiss.

Taiyang crossed his arms as he watched Ruby help Weiss, “… Why exactly are they going over the fence?”

“It’s apparently easier since that’s Weiss’ backyard.”

Understanding this was only going to be the other time that he was going to be alone with Blake, he turned to face his daughters’ childhood friend, “Ruby mentioned that you were trying to convince her out of the crush?”

Blake nodded as she kept her focus on the two friends outside, “Yeah… gosh it was a long time ago… somewhere in the start of the year. But yeah, I warned her about the crush and told her to move on… but as you can see, she let it progress too much… it’s no longer a crush.”

“Well it is clear as day that it isn’t.”

“I’ve just given up in convincing her to not fall for Weiss, especially since it already did happen… Now all I can warn her about is the heartbreak she’s going to experience.”

Taiyang hummed as she refocused his attention back to the women outside, now just in the awkward sequence in getting Weiss’ present over the fence safety.

“Well, seeing them both interact tonight… Ruby’s gonna need to cut out a door in the fence. It’s better in the long run as it is easier access.”

“In the… long run?”

Taiyang nodded, “Believe me when I say this but… their dynamic reminds me a lot of Summer’s and mine… this is definitely is not the last I am ever going to see of Weiss.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone!!!
> 
> Thanks for being patient in the past few days! I've had a lot of university work already dumped on me and I needed to prioritise that before uploading this.
> 
> If you want me to be honest, I've already written all the chapters for this fic, but I wanted to draw a piece of work for each one so that's why I didn't just upload the next one in a break or something 😅
> 
> But, other than this time of the week, I should be organised enough to do some daily uploads until we hit this part of the week again.
> 
> Other than that, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter and I'll see you tomorrow :D


	27. Going all out

* * *

**_Blake Belladonna is the type of person who expresses love in small actions, however she fondly would always say that Weiss’ expression is very… out there, and when the woman gets invested, she goes all out and beyond just for a smile._ **

* * *

Weiss’ arms were crossed as she gripped her elbows.

Her pristine white boot was tapping on the tiles outside of a doorway.

The door opened.

“Blake! Finally! I’ve been waiting out for too long! I’m in need of advice.” Weiss exclaimed as she let herself into Yang’s house, which Blake was now renting.

The bookworm quickly stepped aside, the towel resting upon her shoulders being used to dry the tips of her hair.

“Well, I apologise for being surprised out of the blue. I should’ve predicted you and…”

She eyed Weiss’ feline companion who strutted in after Weiss.

“… Cakes would just barge into the house.”

Weiss said nothing as she walked to the couches in the open living room and plopped herself on it, her finger on her arm now tapping with a steady beat.

Blake closed the door, watching as Weiss’ eyes close in thought and the cat going to lounge in the sunlight on the windowsill.

Blake headed towards her bedroom, “I’m going to change out of this bathrobe… and I’ll bring some tea.”

* * *

“So… you’ve been extremely quiet, is there a reason you need my advice?” Blake asked as she set down a tray of tea and biscuits, filling both of their teacups.

“… the smart tv has Bluetooth and a camera, right?”

“Um… yeah it does. Yang said she used it to have interviews for some of her overseas opportunities.”

Weiss whipped out her phone and tapped some buttons.

Blake turned her head towards the tv, the tv turning on through the phone connection. She rose an eyebrow as the tv’s Facetime app appeared on the screen, fading into a video call…

“Yo princess! You still confused with what to do?”

Yang’s face appeared on screen, her signature grin adorning her face.

“Oh! Blakey! Nice to see that you also got swept in hurricane Weiss.”

Blake arched a confused eyebrow, before she turned back to Weiss, “… Alright, what is it that you are obsessively worrying about.”

Weiss scoffed, “I think obsessive is an exaggeration.”

“More like understatement! You literally called me in the middle of the night- for you I might add, just because you couldn’t decide on a colour. You are lucky it was daylight where I am, or I would’ve been SO mad.”

“A colour?” Blake questioned.

Weiss waved her hand dismissively, “Don’t dwell on it, I have abandoned that idea a week ago.”

Yang groaned, “Ugh, don’t remind me. Blake you are so lucky you didn’t have to deal with this mess of nerves for over a week! When I left overseas, I thought Weiss would pester you, but it seems she’s still coming to me for advice.”

“Don’t forget it is you who is coming over here soon.”

Blake’s eyes widened, “Yang? Since when?”

“Well this obsessive girl somehow contacted my agent and negotiated that next week would be my week break, conveniently in time for Rubes’ birthday soon.”

“Hey! I do not hear you complaining Ms. Xiao Long.”

Blake sighed as she leaned against the back rest of her couch, “Come on you two… what is it you are exactly planning for Ruby’s birthday.”

“Um…”

“Um…”

Blake facepalmed, “Of course you both are back to square one.”

Yang dramatically slammed her hand on the table her laptop was one, causing the camera to slightly shake, “I’d like to blame it on this lady’s indecisiveness.”

“Hey! You were no help at all!”

“Ahem!” Blake cleared her throat loudly as she bent over to her coffee table and pulled out a pen and pad of paper from underneath. She flipped over some pages filled with story ideas until she landed on a blank slate.

“Why don’t we start with brainstorming ideas.”

Two audible groans resounded from the tv speakers and Weiss.

Blake shook her head with an amused smile on her face as she tapped her pen against the paper.

“Um… where should we start then?” Weiss pondered, fiddling with the hem of her dress.

Yang tapped her finger against her chin, “Well… firstly let’s stay away from a surprise party since we couldn’t decide on how to do that for a week.”

Blake nodded, putting ‘surprise party’ under a small ‘NOPE’ heading at the corner of her page.

“Yo Ice Queen!”

“Seriously? I thought you had forgotten that name.”

“Since you wanted to go above and beyond, what are some things that just are… Ruby-esk?”

“Ruby-esk? Are you not her sister? Shouldn’t you know all about her? This is why I came asking you for help.”

“Weiss, that is not the point. It’s just… uh… um…” Yang blanked out as she looked to her ceiling trying to verbalise her thoughts.

“What I think Yang is trying to say is that… you know Ruby differently to all of us. Even though she’s related to her and we’ve both know her longer than you have… You definitely know a different side to Ruby than both of us.”

Weiss scrunched her brows in confusion, looking back at Blake and Yang, “… I… I don’t exactly understand.”

Yang chuckled as she crossed her arms against the table, “Yeah we don’t exactly get it either.”

Blake nodded in agreement, “I know, they are absolutely polar opposites and from a story-telling standpoint they usually won’t get along this quickly this fast.”

“Well Ruby and I actually didn’t get along when we first met.”

Blake and Yang stared into Weiss’ soul, before she relented, “Okay, so maybe we did get along quicker than what is usual.”

Yang shrugged as she folded her arms behind her head and leaned back on her wooden chair, “Well, then again you both live right behind each other… that probably made you guys get closer.”

Blake nodded as she also came to another conclusion, “And sometimes the opposites attract rule does really work.”

Yang snorted at the irony, Weiss tilting her head in confusion.

“Hah! You picked up a Ruby mannerism!” Yang exclaimed as she started howling in laughter.

Weiss pouted as she crossed her arms, “Okay! Okay! I understand it already! Ruby and I are close friends.”

“Now that we all agree… is there anything that comes into mind?”

Weiss glanced at Blake, tapping her finger on her chin in contemplation.

An unsure expression bloomed into her face, “… um… Desserts?”

A slap on a forehead resounded from the speakers, “Blake, it seems that we have been proven wrong.”

“Well it’s hard to come up with something when you are just put on the spot!”

“Ignore Yang, we can do something with this.”

Blake circled the word ‘desserts’ repeatedly in thought, “… If we are thinking of desserts and birthdays, why don’t you bake a cake?”

“Hmmm…”

“Wait… am I seriously flying over there just to share a cake?”

Blake held up the remote, tapping on the mute button threateningly. Yang effectively zipped up her mouth.

The two friends then watched as Weiss slowly descended into an obsessive dark hole of planning…

“Hm a flavour, maybe cookie dough? No, Ruby likes the dough being served as ice cream… and I also don’t want her going on a sugar high from the copious amounts of sugar in the icing… maybe chocolate chipped flavour… Wait how many layers…”

Weiss started to mentally plan out her over-elaborate plan, starting to tip into the realm of fantasy.

Yang and Blake the shared an uneasy look.

Yang’s voice reverberated through the speakers, “Weiss, we know that Ruby loves cake but even she’ll think that your ‘off-the-rails’ plan is a bit too much.”

Weiss stared at the tv for a moment before she let out a frustrated groan and smothered her face with a pillow in an attempt to force some creative thought to somehow get there.

Yang glanced at Weiss, rubbing the back of her neck with her right hand, “If it makes you feel any better… I really don’t have an amazing gift for Rubes, and sure I got some souvenirs from New York… but it isn’t as deeply thought as what you are intending.”

Weiss lifted the pillow from her face and curled her arms around the pillow to her chest, “But Ruby thinks the world of you. You just coming over for her birthday would be an amazing gift for her.”

Yang smiled at the sentiment, “Really?”

Blake agreed with a soft smile, “Of course, you two love each other very much. I sometimes wish I had a sibling like you two.”

Yang grinned, as she waved her hand in a down motion, “Alright, alright you two. I know you miss me and Ruby’s dynamic that much. You all are gonna get all this Yang back soon, so don’t you worry!”

Weiss and Blake both facepalmed.

“And now the moment has been ruined.”

Before Yang could retort, a phone could be heard from the corner of the room she was in.

“Ah, sorry guys but let me just quickly answer that!”

Yang pressed a button on her laptop to mute the microphone, leaving both of her friends with the view of a white wall that the laptop was faced towards.

“I guess that should be a sign for us to take a brief break! Frankly we are getting nowhere and starting to veer off course.” Weiss stated as she uncharacteristically flopped against the back of the sofa, her posture slumping down as she frowned.

Blake moves a bit closer so Weiss could see her face without turning her head in a more uncomfortable position.

“You are really bothered by this, aren’t you?”

“Well yeah, Ruby is a very precious friend to me.”

“… Hm…”

“What?”

“It’s just…” Blake looked down to her lap for a moment, “I’ve… never seen you try this hard for people who you…”

Weiss pushed herself up slightly, curious at Blake’s unfinished comment.

“For who?”

“Weiss… can you be honest with me for one moment… how are you and Neptune going?”

“Oh… Neptune.” Weiss looked up to the ceiling in thought, “We… we are okay.”

“Okay?”

“Well if you want me to elaborate, we are… comfortable, it is all ‘smooth sailing.’”

“… Really now?”

“Yes, of course.”

“Do you love Neptune?”

“U-um what?”

“Do you love him?”

Weiss pushed herself up properly, posture back straight and hands nestled in her lap.

“I… well… we both have been together for over a year now. I guess people would have usually passed the ‘love you’ stage by now.”

“Wait… you both haven’t?”

“Um… well he has said it… but it doesn’t feel like the right time when I have to… uh… um…”

“Right time? There’s never a right time to say those words, it’s just how you feel…”

Blake observed Weiss’ face fall.

“Weiss? Are you sure you-”

“We haven’t been able to meet up recently due to events.” Weiss interrupted, “… maybe I should call him over at some point-”

**_Ping!_ **

Weiss froze and reached in her skirt’s pocket to pull out her phone.

She sighed as she tapped on the notification and absentmindedly scrolled through the email, “Ah… it is just an email from a gaming magazine I subscribed to.”

“A gaming magazine?”

“Ruby suggested it to me so I can keep up with some of the new games that are coming out… and I’ve actually found some cool games through-”

Weiss halted; her words frozen as she stared at the phone screen.

“… Weiss? Is there something wrong?”

Rustling came from the speakers as Yang back on screen again, adjusting herself to the seat so her face could be seen properly, “Sorry I just had to re-affirm my visit to go back home…” Her words faded out slowly as she noticed Weiss’ odd behaviour. “Um what is it you got there Weiss?”

“I… I have found an idea!”

“Hm?” Blake questioned as she scooted closer to Weiss to see what was on her screen, “Ah… now that is a Ruby-esk present.”

Weiss puffed her chest proudly, “Why of course! I only know the best.”

“Now, now Ice Queen. Just a few minutes ago, who was having a full on have a mid-life crisis this early in her lifespan?”

Weiss said nothing as she quickly screenshotted her screen and sent it to Yang.

“… OH HELL YEAH! Sign me up for that too!”

“Yang, you do realise I’m going to get her tickets for _her_ birthday.”

Yang waved off Weiss, “Sure, sure… but you can’t just let us out on the fun!”

Blake meekly nodded in agreement, “… there are some things and people going to be there this year… I would love to go if you’re okay with it.”

Weiss rubbed her temples with a sigh, “Well there goes that small moment of triumph. But yes, I’ll let you two come…”

“Aw yeah!”

“But you’ll both have to pay the price of a normal admission fee.”

“But-”

“Yang, at the very least. VIP tickets are obviously much more expensive. And even though I may be rich it is still a lot of money, and I don’t just go buying stuff out willy nelly.”

“Well you weren’t thinking that when Ruby’s washing machine is involved.”

“…”

“Hah! Got her!”

“Nope! That situation was concerning life’s necessities! It is totally an unrelated topic.”

“Hm… But it sti-”

“Yang. Just accept Weiss’ offer already.”

“… Fine. But only for you Blake.”

Weiss smirked at Yang’s submission as she tapped the keyboard on her phone to confirm the payment.

“… And I’ve got the email for the 5 tickets.”

Blake nodded approvingly as Yang paraded in her chair in glee. Yang then froze in her actions.

“… 5? I’m pretty sure there’s four of us.”

Weiss sat silently as she stared at her lap, her eyes shifting towards Blake, “I… I’m inviting someone else.”

Yang tilted her head in confusion, whilst Blake’s eyes slowly widened at the realisation.

“Are you sure?”

“Well it’s been a while and I need to see him.”

“… Need? Not want?”

“Um… YANG! So, the whole plan for the day…” Weiss started to ramble of her ideas of how to approach Ruby’s birthday.

Yang nodded as she took in the information. She glanced to Blake’s side of the camera in worry.

Blake sighed and shook her head. She gestured her head to Weiss to urge her to continue paying attention to Weiss’ plans.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone!
> 
> Not much is happening today, but as you can see in my art today, I've been busy as it is very sparse 😅
> 
> Anyways, I all hope you have a great day and I'll get back to you all tomorrow!!


	28. Surprises on Both Sides

* * *

**_Yang Xiao-Long always preaches that love is a surprise, that the effort in some surprises show what people would do just to see their loved one smile in glee. She however also says that surprise could be a sign of something more… or something less._ **

* * *

****

Ruby hummed happily as she got up from her bed, swinging her feet over the edge to start getting ready for the day ahead of her.

She again hummed the same tune as she travelled downstairs with a skip in her step. Once she reached the bottom floor, she pulled her arms over her in a stretch, as she walked over to get cereal before she stopped herself.

She paused to get her phone from her pocket of her hoodie to check the message she got from Weiss earlier…

“Huh… she did say to not eat anything.”

Ruby’s smile grew a bit brighter as she paced over to her beanbag and plopped down it with an exuberant sigh.

“A whole day with Weiss! Well this birthday can’t get any better.”

With a contained squeal she rolled as much as she can on the beanbag to stave off the light redness blooming on to her cheeks.

**Ring! Ring!**

She jumped up from her seat and with a hop in her step, she walked to the door.

“Hello Weiss! Lovely day we are having.”

**POP**

Ruby blinked in bewilderment as confetti slowly down on and around her.

On the other side of the door Weiss smiled, with an empty party popper in her hand. She giggled at Ruby’s reaction whilst confetti framed her bubbly figure.

Ruby’s fading blush came back in full force as she stuttered a verbal reaction.

Weiss giggled again, “Happy Birthday Ruby!”

“U-u-u-u-uh.” Oh no, she has become broken record.

“I’m pretty sure this is when you usually dramatically scream with excitement and start bouncing off the walls?”

Oh no, Ruby could not handle that playful smirk either.

“AHHHHHHH THANK YOU WEISS!” Ruby exclaimed as she took Weiss’ hand and shook it aggressively.

Weiss cocked an eyebrow as she elaborated slowly, “Well… it is your birthday, so it is not a problem in the slightest.”

Ruby looked down to their conjoined hands, realising she was _shaking_ Weiss’ hand, “Oh uh… yeah!” She backed off and rubbed the back of her neck, “It is my birthday! Yay! So… what is it you got planned for today.”

She rubbed her hands together in anticipation, focusing on something else.

Weiss gestured for Ruby to step out of her house.

“Let us take a walk.”

* * *

Ruby gasped in joy as they entered a local café that had specialised pancakes on the menu.

“Oh my gosh! I didn’t know this place existed!!”

Weiss pleasantly smiled as she directed Ruby to a booth by the window, “Well… this place is relatively new. I only just found this place myself only recently.”

Ruby cheekily looked over to Weiss side with a coy smile, “… Aw you were thinking of me Weiss~”

Weiss huffed as she straightened the tableware on her side, “I just so happened to be walking past.”

“Sure Weiss, sure.”

The waitress came by, wielding a pen and pad, “What would you like birthday girl?”

Ruby turned towards the familiar voice, “… NORA! You work here?! I thought that you and your husband had a small catering business?”

Nora manically chuckled as she spun on the spot to emphasize the surroundings, “Guess what! We upgraded!! NOW PANCAKES ARE THE LIFE!!”

“Nora! Please don’t spin! And we’ve got more customers coming in!”

Nora stopped her spinning and resumed her position of ready to take an order, “He’s such a worry wart, then he goes ordering for me to keep running around. Coming in a minute Ren!” She grinned as she rested her arm on her showing belly, in a much more relaxed posture. She then eagerly looked at Ruby and Weiss.

“Well give up your orders! And don’t think about paying! It’s your birthday Ruby!”

“Nora it’s alright, I can pay for my own meal.”

“I will break your legs if you won’t take this damn deal!”

“Okay, okay.”

Weiss chuckled as she lifted her menu to observe her options, “Still manically intense as ever, aren’t you?”

Nora evilly giggled in reply, as she collected both of their orders. She scanned over the page to make sure before she winked at Weiss.

“Alrighty! I’ll be back with your meals shortly!” She grinned as she zoomed off to attend to other customers and quickly input their orders.

Ruby sighed as she watched Nora go, “I never knew they finally opened their café!”

Weiss nodded her head accepted the coffees that were delivered promptly.

Ruby’s eyes bulged, “And with quick service too!”

“I did not know either. I was suspicious when they withdrew their previous employment with catering at the bank but… when I asked at that time, they were still refurbishing the place and hadn’t wanted to tell anyone until it officially opened. And apparently when it did open, the momentum was so great that they neglected to tell anyone afterwards.”

She shrugged her shoulders with an amused sigh.

“It was only till I discovered this place when I actually realised that they finally got the café. Now we get our interns to go to this place for coffee runs.”

Ruby looked outside the window, “Now that you mentioned it… the bank is close by.”

“Ahem, your birthday pancakes.” Nora interrupted, with an expert flourish of the plates before she placed them down.

Weiss’ breakfast was a classic stack of pancakes, topped with a variety of fruits and drizzled with syrup.

Ruby’s on the other hand was a stack of mini pancakes, all forming to become a sizable castle on the plate. It was topped with whipped cream, strawberries and drizzle with chocolate syrup. The middle stack of pancakes had balls of cookie dough supporting an edible chocolate sign saying _Happy Birthday!_

Another plate clinked against the tabletop, “And a little special gift made by my talented chef Ren!”

On a smaller plate was a mini crepe cake, a slice being stylistically already cut out to show the rainbow layers within.

“If you ever want this to go, just say the word and I’ll bring a box!”

“Thanks Nora!” Ruby turned her body towards the kitchen and shouted, “And thanks Ren!”

Ruby turned towards her pancakes, her mouth-watering as she cut into the stack, “How in the world did they get this done so quickly.” She plopped a large slice into her mouth.

“I actually warned them ahead of time… and it seems my guess for which meal you wanted seemed to be correct.”

Ruby’s eyes bulged, “Wow you really thought this out.”

Weiss waved her hand dismissively, “It’s your birthday, just focus on it… which I’ve been watching you periodically glance at your phone. Just take a look at the messages that have been blowing up. I don’t mind.”

“You’re the best Weiss!”

* * *

Weiss turned away from the window once she heard a sigh.

“What is it Ruby?”

“Oh… it’s just that, usually by now Yang would’ve greeted me happy birthday. I guess she is just too busy at work today… Maybe I’ll get it later.”

“Oh, don’t worry about that, I guarantee she will later.”

A horn of a car beeped loudly outside.

“That’s our ride!”

Weiss checked Ruby’s plate.

“Well, since you have finished. It’s time for us to go! Nora! We’ll have that cake takeaway!”

“Way ahead of you!”

Both women flinched at Nora’s sudden announcement from the side of their booth.

“Geez how do you get there so fast!”

Weiss remarked as she took the packaged cake from Nora for Ruby.

Nora put her hands on her hips proudly, “Great customer service!”

“My whole company is a regular. You don’t need to win me over.”

With that exasperated comment both friends waved farewell to the other workers and Ren before heading outside.

Ruby tilted her head at the car, “This car…”

The screen rolled down.

“Hey babe. Hey Ruby. Hop on in! I’ve been told we have a schedule?”

“Hey Neptune.” Weiss greeted with a smile as she opened the passenger door and went in.

“O-oh…” Ruby muttered before she noticed the pleasant smile on his face, “Oh, I mean hi Neptune! Thanks for the ride!”

She hopped in beside Weiss.

Before Neptune started the car, he passed a gift back towards them.

“Happy Birthday Ruby! That there is for you.”

Ruby looked down at the gift, looking back at Neptune with a slightly shaky smile, “You didn’t have to Neptune.”

The man chuckled and waved off her comment, “It’s your birthday, it’s only right I get you something after the help you have been.”

Weiss arched an eyebrow at that comment.

Ruby nervously cleared her throat to distract from Weiss’ unspoken inquiry, before she slowly started tearing the package open.

“I hope you like it. With the rate that Weiss talks about you, I feel like I know you well enough to buy you ten more presents… but I feel that this is the most valuable one right now.”

“OHHHHHHH! The _Battle for Remnant 2_!!!! This game isn’t even out yet! How?!”

Neptune chuckled, “Well I have people in high places who agreed it would be a good idea to give it to you, Miss Red Like Roses.” He gave Ruby a side wink before he froze in realisation, “If that is alright? I know it sounds like a whole advertisement, but I believe you wouldn’t mind since you’ve been raving about want to play it it for a while.”

“…Weiss, I think maybe you talk about me too much.”

“How could I not! I almost see you every day!”

* * *

Ruby happily bounced in her seat as Neptune announced that they were getting closer to their destination.

Neptune pulled into a parking lot, in front of a large building. “Here we are!” He finally exclaimed as he pulled on a different pair of shades to use when he exited the car.

Hearing the front door click closed, she took an opportunity to look outside the window and survey the area.

She read the large banner stretched across the top of the entrance.

“Wait a moment… A convention?! We are at Comic-con?! Why? How? Eh?”

Weiss rolled her eyes amusedly at her friend, “You always wanted to go to one but I for the life of me never understood why you didn’t.”

Ruby shivered to herself, “I went to many vidcons as a featured creator… let’s just say they are kinda stressful when a lot of fans are throwing themselves at you.”

With the boxed cake in one hand and her other arm looped around Ruby she slowly nudged Ruby towards the exit of the car, “Well, we’ll make sure that you only have today for yourself, and us of course. I called ahead and managed to get permission for a few things… But you better just enjoy yourself.”

The two exited the car and walked towards the entrance, noticing a few people waiting in front.

Neptune of course had walked ahead of them and was waiting beside two figures leaning on the wall.

“Ruby!!!”

“… Yang?”

Ruby squinted to see Yang waving over to her exaggeratedly on her head.

“YANG!”

They both ran to each other and Yang scooped up her little sister and swung her around in a circle.

They both squealed in delight as Yang slowed her spin and properly gave her sister a hug.

“Oh Rubes! I missed you so much!”

“YANG! I missed you too! What are you doing here!” Ruby asked as her sister released her.

“Well, a certain icy friend of yours wanted me to come in time for your birthday and here I am!”

Ruby’s face morphed into one of surprise as she looked back towards Weiss who had crossed her arms triumphantly as if she won a prize. Ruby faced back towards her sister.

“For how long?”

“Well, I was originally going to stay for a week but, it turns out that I did perfectly in all my scenes… and since I’m a side character I finished up filming quite early. I’ll have more screen time in the next season but I’m fine with what I have right now. So… after a talk with my agent I get to stay here till after New Year’s!”

“WAIT! Seriously?!”

“Yes seriously, and she is _so_ lucky she didn’t have to pay for that first-class seat.”

“In my defence, people may recognise me on the plane.”

“I see the fame has got to your head.” Weiss deadpanned.

“I think she was just really eager to try first class.” Blake piped in.

Yang huffed at the black and white duo before settling back on Ruby, “But speaking of my extended stay here… someone obviously had to be here too!”

She bent down to pick up a black and white corgi who was hiding behind her legs.

“ZWEI!” The birthday girl exclaimed loudly as she took the dog from her sister’s hold and cuddled him warmly.

“I missed you boy.”

Zwei let out a quiet yip.

Ruby pulled back and titled her head at her canine companion, “Hm Zwei? You look very tired there.”

The dog barked back, ears lolling to the side like the tongue hanging off his jaw as his tail swung back and forth in protest to Ruby’s statement.

Yang gave the dog a scratch under the chin, “He’s been feeling very tired lately. The old timer is taking all the naps and scratches he can get when I get a break off work. But he definitely perked up when I told him we were coming over to visit here.”

“You are such a cute and determined doggo Zwei! I know we just reunited but we’re going to a convention… I’m not sure they are going to allow you in.”

Weiss waved a fan of tickets in front of Ruby’s face before she passed them around to everyone.

“Lucky for us I was able to ask ahead and get permission to bring this little boy in.” She scratched Zwei behind the ear, taking the pet out of Ruby’s arms in exchange for the ticket.

Ruby squinted down, “… VIP TICKETS?!”

Weiss smiled as she let Zwei down to the floor, “Which is why it would be so much easier to travel around with Zwei. We can walk behind the scenes and have someone watch him while we dive into the crowds to get to the booths.”

Ruby squealed on the spot before she rushed to hug Weiss. The said woman’s arms were open to accept the hug and velocity which Ruby sprung at.

She hugged Weiss tightly, burying her face into Weiss’ shoulder, “Thanks Weiss!” She then let her voice go an octave lower as she whispered, “Seriously, all this effort means a lot to me. Thank you. You… you are _amazing._ ”

Weiss’ smile grew soft as she pulled Ruby closer and let her chin rest on her shoulder, “… Anything for you Ruby.” She whispered back.

Neptune, being close enough, heard Weiss’ line. He longingly looked at his girlfriend as she and her best friend whispered some more and giggled at some inside jokes.

Blake put her hand on Neptune’s arm to get his attention, “You okay…” She asked, before she followed where he was previously looking at.

She watched the scene with mixed emotions.

She glanced back at Neptune before coming to a conclusion.

“Ahem! Now if you two are done whispering and giggling like two high schoolers, I believe it’s time to retrieve our VIP passes with the tickets and get a slice of that cake that Weiss promised to bring?”

Weiss perked up with a pinkish cheek as she and Ruby distanced themselves. Ruby herself looking quite like her namesake.

“T-that is right Blake!” She looped her hand through Ruby’s arm as she led to the woman into the building, “We must begin! Ruby’s birthday does not last forever.”

“I wish!” Ruby exclaimed as she was dragged inside.

Blake looked back at Neptune and nodded in understanding, as she chased after the duo to ensure they did not waste time.

“You okay?” Yang asked, as she stood beside Neptune for that moment.

“I… I’d do anything for her.”

Yang grimaced, “I may not know you as deeply as Weiss, but I know you would.”

“Why are you even comforting me? I thought you would be all over your sister’s birthday.”

Yang gave out a chuckle, “Well once we enter through those doors, I’m going to be Ruby crazy. But… people should not be treated like that.”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa, just so you know Weiss is not intentionally hurting me or anything.”

“I’m not referring to anything like that… I don’t think she quite realises what she is doing.”

“She definitely does not know, before this plan got into motion, she was confiding to me how worried she is that Ruby wouldn’t like it and…” He let out a bitter sigh. Neptune then opened his eyes and shook his thoughts off in a panic, “I… I shouldn’t be mad… None of this is just her fault… And I still love her despite it all.”

Yang’s eyes widened, “Love? Surely she loves you too.”

“She’s… never said it back. Now it is a thing that we both avoid addressing.”

“… Is… that is not healthy.”

“… I know. But…” He looked at the entrance in thought, “I just never seen her this content before… I don’t want to bring it up.”

“You really should Neptune… before this goes into toxic realms.”

“Toxic? I think you are stretching…”

Yang shot him a knowing look, “Even if both people who are the nicest and most well-meaning can still be in a toxic relationship, it just takes many things to get there. You are a nice person Neptune, I don’t want either you or Weiss ever going there.”

“… Okay, I know what you mean.”

“Neptune… you both really need to discuss this.”

“I… I will approach her about it sometime soon.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone!
> 
> I was busy in the past days so I had to take a day off from everything and that in return resulted me in not uploading yesterday 😅
> 
> Either way, hope you enjoy the chapter! I might upload the next one later today since I want to get enough rest before tomorrow. Later!!! :D


	29. Backyard Development

* * *

**_Blake Belladonna and Yang Xiao-Long says that watching Ruby Rose and Weiss Schnee’s relationship slowly change before their eyes was sweet but slow. Either way, they both agree that their love for each other bloomed like a flower, developing slowly in the backyard._ **

**_Love is in the development._ **

* * *

A sunny day shone upon the backyard of Ruby Rose, the soft sounds of nature filling the air.

Yang fiddled with the stems of the few flowers in the palm of her hands. She stood beside her sister Ruby as she looked up to the newly planted cherry blossom tree beside the shed. She then faced downwards, towards where her sister was crouched in front of a stone, adorning the name of a faithful companion over the years.

Yang kneeled beside her, putting a right hand on her shoulder, and offers the flowers with her left.

Ruby smiled to her sister gratefully as she gently taking the purple flowers and placing them over the patch of dirt, where a few seeds of the same flower was planted the day prior.

Yang rubbed her shoulder comfortably, as she initiated a hug between them.

And slowly, the sounds of nature faded into the background, the sisters releasing the hug as they became aware of their two friends quietly chatting behind them in the rectangular gazebo.

Ruby’s eyes rested upon Weiss, who while chatting, caught Ruby’s eyes and gave Ruby a soft and understanding smile, placing a hand over her heart.

Ruby’s replied with a small smile, giving Weiss a slight nod.

Weiss nodded back, before being pulled back into conversation by a confused Blake.

Ruby gave out a longing sigh, as her eyes continued to rest upon Weiss, unbeknownst to the said woman.

Yang gave Ruby a shoulder nudge. She gave Ruby a teary smile, her grin displaying cheeriness despite her down casted state, “What’cha thinking about Rubes?”

Ruby looked down, placing a hand over her own heart, “A wise person told me they are always with us… meaning that he will always be with us.”

Yang gave a grateful smile, then connecting her sister’s previous gaze and the quote, “… That person must be very important to you.”

“Yep.”

Yang turned her torso to give the stone a pat, before she stood up and started walking towards the gazebo.

Ruby perked at her movement and quickly copied her movements and followed.

Blake faced them as they approached and stepped onto the deck, “You two… okay with us being here? We can let you have a moment and can check out the renovations another day?”

Yang waved off the suggested as she plopped herself beside her, “No worries, me and Ruby can do with the company.”

Ruby pipped in as she took place beside Weiss, “Yes please… I’ve learnt that sometimes friends are helpful.”

Weiss obliviously tilted her head in curiousity at Ruby’s blatant reference.

Ruby shifted her eyes away as she rubbed the back of her neck, “Um… what do you guys think?” She emphasized her question with a flourish of her hands.

The Yang and Blake openly looked around properly at the new renovations, their eyes roaming over the new plants sitting in suspended flowerbeds in front of the two windows of the lower floor. Next to the shed, a sizable cherry blossom tree sat snuggly between the fence and shed, a dirt flowerbed with roses blooming out on the other side of the bed. The pergola attached to the side of the house covered light beige brick-like tiles. On a side of the pergola, a mechanism for roll-out washing lines to be suspended were installed securely in replacement of the taken down squared washing line. It was only then that they noticed the green squared washing line that used to be situated in the middle of the backyard has been removed. Instead, a curved brown gravelled path starting from the back door and bending to the gazebo. At the bend, a stoned path embedded into the grass led an alternative route towards the base of the tree.

Blake crossed her arms with an impressed smile on her face, “I will admit, I never knew that the backyard was this big. It always felt so small and claustrophobic whenever I ventured out back.”

“You’re telling me! The last time it ever looked like this was when Mum used to take care of the yard.”

Yang paused, looking Ruby right in the eye, “She would’ve been proud.”

The sisters shared a moment, before Blake slowly pulled them out of their trance, “I also noticed you removed the old clothesline.”

Weiss groaned as she buried her face into her hands, “You do not know the amount of work it took to get that out. I wholeheartedly blame Ruby.”

“Weiss! Come on, you gotta admit… the retractable washing line is a good idea!”

“Well of course, but you flailed around confused when we tried to pull out the line. I literally did that part myself.”

As the two neighbours bantered, Yang glanced back and forth between them, a sly grin on her face as she watched them interact.

Blake rolled her eyes at Yang’s expression, interrupting the conversation, “What exactly is the problem anyways. You did say you were going to help Ruby, and it seems like you did a good job.”

Weiss groaned as her hands dropped into crossed arms, her face being buried deeper into the fabric of her sleeves as she faced the other direction.

Ruby grinned toothily at Blake, “It looks all good now, but we only put a path was cause she dug such a large that we had to cover it with something else.”

“Don’t remind me.”

“OH! Weissicle finally messed up!” Yang exclaimed.

“Oh, don’t even mention that name ever again.”

“Wait… how exactly are you going to go over the fence now?”

Weiss and Ruby followed Blake’s index finger towards the back gate, where another dirt flower bed filled with roses sat in front of the fence, therefore making it harder for anyone to jump over or land without damaging the plants.

Ruby grabbed Blake’s hand and moved its direction towards the tree.

“The tree’s strong enough to be support my weight.”

“In two years at the very least! Its roots haven’t properly set it yet!” Weiss reasoned.

Blake arched an eyebrow and turned towards the white and red duo, “Why does this seem like this is all to convenient?”

“In my defence, this woman was just too insistent for there to be a method to get over the fence.”

“Sure Weiss, like you were totally not sad when you realised that the flowerbed was in the way.”

“I was not ‘totally sad!’”

“You were! You had like this super sad aura around and then you were extremely happy when I mentioned which tree I wanted in the backyard.”

“Again, I was not ‘extremely happy’.”

“I beg to disagree.”

“… why did I ever enlighten you in that phrase.”

As Weiss and Ruby bickered once again, the friends getting lost in their own world, Blake and Yang shared a knowing look.

They quietly talked amongst themselves.

“They’re cute.”

“They sure are Blakey.”

“… um, what should we do. We know this unfair to someone.”

“I’ll… I’ll talk to lil’ sis later…” Yang leaned back and crossed her arms behind her head, “I’m till after New Year’s anyways.”

“… You’re not gonna leave it till New Year’s, are you?”

“Of course not!”

“What do you think Yang!” Ruby obliviously interrupted the conversation.

Yang eyes quirked confusedly as she fumbled up a response, “Uh what sis?”

“That Weiss has feelings and is really happy about this tree.”

Yang looked at Weiss, who was bright red with embarrassment, struggling to compose herself. She then looked to Blake as she let out a knowing response, “Oh please, she totally is capable of feelings.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! 
> 
> I will say, looking at the comments in the 27th chapter for last one, a lot of people were expecting there to be huge fight, and that really surprised me :0 but I will say, looking back at tropes that usually happen when there is this huge collide, all your theories makes sense.
> 
> SO here’s the kicker, when writing that chapter I was thinking how the way I wrote the characters would react, and oddly enough I think that none of them would have made a huge commotion or fight during someone else’s own birthday. A lot of people were expecting Neptune to flip out but I personally think if that happened in this story, it would actually seem out of character as he never did anything that would lead to that. Which actually leads me to why I painted Neptune this way, in what we have seen him on the show, he actually isn’t a confrontational character - like when they were in the tournament, Neptune actually runs from the fight because of his fear of water, and is more ‘along for the ride’ when it came to investigating the white fang. Also, I felt that Weiss was a little obsessed with everything going perfectly that she would just neglect Neptune which causes him to be left in the dust again.
> 
> I hope people weren’t too disappointed, this story is more of a realistic slice of life (albeit exaggerated at times), and let's be honest, when LGBTQ+ people try to get together or notice their feelings, a lot of them are chicken about it (which I'm not trying to be rude or stereotyping because I am TOTALLY guilty of this exact thing 😅)
> 
> Anyways, sorry for the long notes... BUT as you can see I double uploaded today since I won't be able to upload in a few days so, comment if you have any thoughts about last chapter here, and I'll see you in the next page 👀


	30. Teaching Growth

* * *

**_Yang Xiao Long always mentions that she never knew love until she took a step back and analysed the love within Weiss Schnee, which had made her take time to teach Ruby many things. It allowed her sister to grow into a wonderful woman. She always remarks that love can teach you to grow without yourself even knowing._ **

* * *

****

Yang sat on a stool on the opposite side of the kitchen island, whereas Ruby stood across from her as she worked her way around the kitchen.

She leaned into her hand, lazily yawning as she spoke to her sister.

“So… I’m going to be rooming with Blake until work starts back again in January.”

“You are so lucky she decided not to change up your room… uh not yet anyways.”

“Uh, that devious cat! She’s been holding that threat over my head to make sure I take her to some fancy and expensive sushi restaurant.” Yang groaned with closed as she slid her arms into a cross on the bench and rested her chin on them, “I’ve taught her too well.”

“Well to be fair, she resurrected your front lawn and also has to put up with your weird gnome neighbours.”

“How she does it? I don’t know. Too tired to care… where is this _amazing coffee_ that Weiss talks about?”

Ruby giggled at her sister’s drowsy state as she poured hot water into a coffee press, “Just wait a minute Yang! And I thought Weiss was impatient…”

Yang opened an eye at Ruby’s statement, “Weiss huh… she comes here often?”

“Hah often ain’t the right word! She always comes over here for here daily coffee dose. She even tries to convince me to make it at, like, eight in the evening, but even I know that is a bad idea.”

“Hmmmm…” Yang watched as Ruby got the sugar ready and fetched the milk from the fridge. While waiting, the younger sister then pulled out a frying pan and began to crack eggs to make it sunny side up.

She cracked as grin as she slowly sat back up, “Never thought I’d see the day.”

Ruby turned around to cocked her head in confusion at her sister.

“You waking me up at eight and now making perfect eggs, while manning the coffee press I didn’t even know we had… just… wow.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“I thought you’d just hire someone to clean the house and live off UberEATS for the rest of your life.”

“Well look at me now!” Ruby said playfully with a cheeky grin.

Yang leaned into her left hand and instead of laughing at her sister’s triumphant state, she instead smiled softly.

“Yeah look at you now.” She said without an ounce of mockery.

Ruby grin turned shy as she focused on the coffee press, checking the time and poured the coffee into a mug, tipping in a bit of milk to Yang’s liking.

She then turned towards her sister and slid the mug towards Yang, “Coffee’s up.”

She announced with a not-so-subtle victory hand pump on the side. She probably does not successfully slide the mug all the time.

Yang raised an eyebrow at Ruby’s flourish with the coffee, “Alright then…mmMM! Wow! This coffee _is_ amazing!”

Ruby bashfully grinned as she rubbed the back of her neck, “Really?”

Yang exaggeratedly gave out an exasperated sigh, “And I guess this is the ‘unironic humbleness’ that Weiss comments on.”

Ruby gave her sister a sceptical look, “No seriously, are you just being your usual over the top self about this?”

“No seriously.” Yang playfully mocked before she changed into a very serious demeanour, “No, seriously… this is really good coffee.”

Ruby flinched backwards at Yang’s display, “Yikes! I’ll never get used to your hyper realistic acting. Has Blake ever told you that it annoys her when you pull that?”

“Oh yes she has… so of course I would just do it more.”

Ruby chuckled as she dunked the coffee grounds into a bowl and began to wash out the coffee press, “Well I guess I’ll be stuck hearing her complaining about that then.”

“But really Ruby, this coffee is good! Have you ever thought about doing a few barista classes? I’m pretty sure any coffee shop would gladly hire you.”

Ruby shrugged, “Never really thought about that… I don’t know, I’m pretty content at EBgames right now… and the channel does bring a fair bit of income in… but I do like making coffee for people.”

She hummed seriously in thought as she dried the coffee press with a towel.

Yang nodded agreeingly with the statement as she took another sip of coffee. She then heard a sound of a ball landing in Ruby’s backyard.

Both women stopped for a moment to look towards the window to see that Weiss had thrown over a tennis ball as she was watering her own garden.

Checking to see if she had her window open, Ruby cupped her hands and called out, “Thanks Weiss!”

A muffled reply was heard, “Just don’t forget it next time you dolt!”

“I won’t!”

“Oh please Ruby! This has already been the 10th time this week!” Weiss added before the hose she was using got audibly stronger as she turned up the pressure of water.

Ruby rolled her eyes as she kept moved back to face Yang with her arms resting on the table, “Probably gonna forget it accidentally again… you know, I’d definitely be lost without her.”

Yang hummed thoughtfully, “Weiss does have that impact on you.”

“She sure does… she didn’t have to do anything, but she helped me out anyways.”

“Well… she is your friend, of course she would want to help you out.”

“Well of course but… Argh! She’s too amazing!”

“And you’ve still got it bad.”

Ruby sighed in frustration, “Still? Why hasn’t it died down… like that’s what Blake and I both agreed would happen.”

“… I guess me leaving and her helpin’ out here a bit more brought you closer.”

“Yang, not helping.”

Yang shrugged, “I don’t know what you want me to do. I can’t exactly change both of your feelings.”

“I just need you to talk me through it! Like how I helped you through that breakup with your boyfriend back in high school… what’s his name… OH Fl-”

“Yeah, we are not going to talk about him…” Yang groaned, “Oh gosh that relationship was the most cringiest I’ve ever been. Don’t want to think about it.”

“Okay, but you get what I mean? I need to like, compartmentalize my thoughts! Yeah that’s it!”

“Alright Weiss definitely has an impact on you.”

“Yang!”

“Alright, alright… hm… so by that word I’m guessing you want to separate your feelings with every single one of Weiss actions?”

“Yup. Help.”

“Yeah no, it doesn’t work that way. If everything that Weiss does brings up these feelings, then it’ll only go away when your feelings change.”

“Come on! There’s gotta be a technique, right? Like how in the world did you get over Kate? You were head over heels for her.”

“Ruby, I think you misconstrued that relationship. I was not head over heels for her.”

“Yeah but having a crush on a friend with benefits was obviously gonna turn out badly… but it didn’t.”

“Well, it’s because-”

“What about Sidney? Weren’t they like your longest relationship? I thought you both would end up together but… you got over each other? Like how?”

“They were very understanding when-”

“How about Fioana, Carmen, George… wow you have had a lot of relationships.”

“Ruby!” Yang interrupted as she messaged her temples and muttered to herself, “Geez, how did I end up with being interrogated.”

Yang looked back up at Ruby with a resolute answer in her eyes, “In all of those relationships, we all understood what needed to change and that some people just fall out of love… But never mind me, you weren’t there to see how we handled it… why don’t you think about how you got over Blake.”

“Oh yeah, we still are good friends, aren’t we…” Ruby thought for trying to connect the dots. “Well, I guess that after I confessed to her… she rejected me… and then I understood it and knew that she’d never see me that way so… it faded?”

“Yes… so… what do you need to do now?”

“I don’t want to confess to her!”

“I’m not saying you have to… what do you feel you need to do?”

“Um… I guess since I know she’ll never feel that way with me… I should just understand and… argh! That’s just so hard to do!!! Sometimes the things she does can be coded like romantically… but I know she does not have that intention at all!” Ruby sighed, “What do I do…”

“I guess-”

“She’s never gonna feel that way about me!” Ruby said with conviction.

Yang looked bewildered at Ruby, “Um… what?”

“Okay… maybe since I said it out loud it will sink in…”

“…”

“…”

“…”

“Alright maybe it’ll sink in more if you say it.”

“Isn’t… isn’t that what you and Blake tried to do before?”

“Argh!!! Now I’m just going in circles! Please Yang just say it again so it will really sink in!”

Yang watched as her sister spiralled from a calm morning to a cycle of denial.

She put her hands up in a coaxing action, “Okay… so it seems that a lot of other things grew while I wasn’t here and-”

She paused as she started to see a dark smoke arise from the eggs.

“Ruby the eggs!”

“Huh? AHHHH!” Ruby screamed as she leapt to the stove to shut it off and try to desperately salvage the eggs whilst fanning smoke in the direction of the window.

Yang stayed on her chair as she leaned on her hand and stared at Ruby in thought, “I guess some things just never change.” She muttered to herself.

She then flashed her eyes towards the backyard where Weiss, unfazed, watered the plant in her backyard. Apparently, even though Ruby’s scream was loud enough she knew that it was just the usual of Ruby messing up.

Yang let out another odd sigh of relief at the situation… she was just thankful that none of her relationships were this complicated.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright everyone!
> 
> I am happy to announce that the next five chapters are the finale ones :3 it'll start off a little slow but I hope everyone enjoys them when they come in a few days!
> 
> Which reminds me, yes I will be busy the next few days with university (for some sadistic reason they made an assessment due in the second week 😓
> 
> This note is really sparse, but if skipped the previous one I suggest reading it if you were curious about Ruby's birthday chapter.
> 
> What else... Oh! I was listening to the playlist for 'Charon Docks at Daylight' - which if you love women loving women and zombies, highly suggest reading it! It's on fictionpress online (very free :3) Maybe check that out while waiting for the finale to come out for this fic!
> 
> Other than that, I must go get some rest so I don't run late to class... See you in the next chapter :D


	31. A Distance of Change

* * *

**_Neptune Vasilias would quote to me that “Distance can make love stronger.” But… he would then sigh and end with, “But it can also allow cracks to become larger.”_ **

* * *

Neptune closed the door behind him as he stepped into Weiss’ home, the walls feeling much more unfamiliar than usual.

He followed Weiss into the living room, where she placed the pasta take out onto the coffee table, the other fast food she bought left in the plastic bag beside it. She then picked up the remote from its designated space next to the table’s potted plant.

She passed it to Neptune with a pleasant smile, “Open up Netflix, you can choose what show you want to watch.”

Neptune looked at the remote, and then backed to Weiss who had continued into her kitchen to get her usual china plates and cutlery to eat their takeout on.

He plopped on the chair, flicking through the assortment of shows recommended to Weiss, “So… this is what you like to do?”

Weiss nodded as she walked back into room, arms full of plates and cutlery, “Of course. I did move out here to take a step away from the whole…” She waved her fingers around as she searched for a word, “Corporate side of my family’s life.”

“That included the Michelin starred dates?”

“Oh… it just reminds me so much of all the dinner parties my parents held, I always felt like I had to be scarce to avoid everyone.”

Neptune eyed her as she gingerly sat down next to Weiss on the floor, “Huh… Um… so it’s okay for us to eat here?”

Weiss chuckled, “Well, I’ve been taught that this is a better view to sit and eat while watching.”

“… Oh.”

Neptune dumbly looked down at his plate as Weiss began to fill it up with a portion of his takeout. He shook his head at the thought and decided to focus on choosing something to watch.

As he went through the selection of titles, he grimaced at the range of shows recommended that he did not exactly resonate with, “I… your tastes have changed.”

Weiss idly glanced up to look at what he was looking at before refocusing on her task of filling her plate, “Hm… it’s not that my tastes have changed… I’ve just been able to be more expressive of myself… I have always liked these genres, it’s just that back then I always have felt this aura of expectation that I had to uphold myself upon.”

“… You know, you did not have to keep up pretences with me back then.”

“I… I know, it’s just this year I feel so much at ease with my own opinions then when I was back living at the estate… you know what, I haven’t watch some of the shows we both watched back then… I may as well get caught up with it.”

“… Sure!”

* * *

“… You’re kidding me, she ends up with him?!”

“That’s my exact reaction.”

“But… but that makes no absolute sense! Sure, he buys her back the winery as a show of remorse, but that is no excuse to suddenly forgive their problematic relationship!”

“Of course!”

“Don’t tell me that they only did this because they are the ‘main characters.’”

“That is exactly what I’m speculating… You should’ve seen our friends when they saw this. They had an absolute ‘freak out.’” Neptune chuckled to himself as they saw the credits roll.

Weiss went silent for a moment as fiddled her cutlery straight on the table, “Um… I want to be honest, to be open with you… it’s healthy to not avoid it…”

Neptune raised an eyebrow at Weiss’ muttering as she stated.

“Your friends… I’ve never really felt comfortable around them…”

“W… what? Did someone threaten you? Insult you? Tell me and I’ll handle it.”

“No Neptune, it’s just they aren’t exactly my friends… they are more so are your friends. I honestly feel like they only hang around me because of… well my heritage. I don’t want to accuse and use names…”

“I’ve… I never knew you felt that way…”

“I know, it’s my fault. I should have been more honest with you… and we should have been _talking_ , not avoiding what is bothering us.”

“Oh… of course, I care deeply about this relationship Snow Angel…”

“As do I.” Lie.

Neptune warily nodded at Weiss’ over eagerness at the topic. “Well… I guess if we must start somewhere… I have mentioned that you have changed a lot.”

“Of course, living independently does change people.”

“Sure… but we… we have different tastes now.”

Weiss froze for a moment and looked down at the coffee table that Neptune was gesturing at. Their plates and cutlery were the same, but the food was significantly different. Neptune had only the sauce of the pasta that they previously brought earlier, whilst Weiss had some takeaway chips idly left on her plate from her own personal trip to KFC. On the side she had a bowl where she had some frozen yoghurt.

“That should not be a problem.”

“But KFC? And dessert? The Weiss I knew never liked fast food and looked down upon those who insist in having ice cream right after eating a high-class meal.”

“To be fair, it was frozen yoghurt, not ice cream… But should any of this matter? It’s just food?”

“It’s not just food, our interests have changed drastically. Looking at your Netflix account was like looking at a warped mirror! Not me.”

“Neptune, they are just meaningless shows and movies. We can still be fine even though we don’t have the same tastes.”

Neptune sighed, “Weiss, I thought you wanted to be open and honest.”

“Of course! But these are just small menial things…”

“But they mean the world to me. Goodness, the imply a lot about what is different with us.”

“But being different is not a huge deal… But I… um… I guess I have changed, haven’t I?”

“Yes, you have… into such a dork.”

Suddenly, the tense atmosphere dissipated as Weiss exploded into giggles, “That… that was absolutely unexpected!” Weiss continued, ignoring the tugging in her chest at the use of the word ‘dork.’

“And I also thought you used that to describe one of your friends? The one who still has that emo fringe.”

“We both know he wears that cut flawlessly. I am actually surprised that you haven’t gotten along with him then, if my memory serves me correct, he plays the games that you and Ruby play on that channel of hers.”

“You, you watch that?”

“Of course! How else am I support my girlfriend? And I do find your reactions to the games quite entertaining.”

“It is Ruby’s fault that she is giving me horror games recently to play. I feel like she is getting too much personal entertainment from my reactions.”

Neptune chuckled, letting it die down before he paused for a second, collecting his thoughts.

“You know… I love you.”

Weiss stilled, her eyes meeting his and holding his gaze. They both stared intensely at each other… Neptune felt hope bubble inside of him.

Weiss then cleared her throat, shifting her eyes to the floor.

“I…”

Her eyes briefly glanced at his face before she refocused her attention downwards to his hand. She clasped her left hand of his.

“I know.”

And even Neptune knew that smile looked too melancholic for him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone!!! 
> 
> I'm finally back from my assignment stuff, ready to commence the finale of this story! Well the first finale in this series. A lot of you are worried that this is the end, and it'll amount to something that doesn't satisfy your shipping needs, but worry not! This is the 'Lovely Beginnings' so I'm not done with this slow burn slice of life story yet 😁
> 
> Anyways, slow start of the finale, but it seems Neptune is finally understanding something... maybe what he was hoping was not true 👀
> 
> Also, the art may look a little different... and it is actually a mis-mash of the art style I have for this series, and my actual art style. The shading is what I would usually use but I didn't use it in the previous ones since it takes a lot of time to actually produce. Since we are in the final chapters for this part, I decided to put a little more effort into the last artworks 😊
> 
> Anyways, I hope you are all excited! I'll see you tomorrow with the next chapter :D


	32. Your heart smiles, but also hurts

* * *

**_Reflecting on the roof, Ruby Rose always gazes upon the backyard… always telling me that love can bring highs and lows. She says that her relationship with Weiss was not always sunshine and rainbows, but that it had to go through many lows to get to that forever place in the sun._ **

* * *

Weiss and Ruby both audibly laughed as they passed another shop’s window in the mall.

Ruby excitedly grabbed Weiss’ arm as she tugged her towards the next store, “Look! They have fairy lights!!!”

Weiss playfully rolled her eyes as she watched Ruby start rambling off the many reasons why she should definitely buy them.

As Ruby fawned over the lights, Weiss’ eyes widened as she eyed another shelf.

“S… snowbells?”

Ruby paused and followed her friend’s gaze, “Aw! They have flowers!”

Weiss fiddled with the leathery petal, “Well of the fake kind…”

Ruby picked one from the bunch on the shelf as she observed it, “Pretty forever then.”

Weiss’ face bloomed pink.

* * *

Nora grinned as she leaned back on the bench behind the counter.

She watched as Weiss and Ruby both spoke to each other over their early dinner. They were both sitting in their usual booth by the window, their exuberant conversation filled with giggles and inside jokes making the remaining employees at the café smile.

Nora checked the clock, it was almost 5:30 pm. She looked to see they were the last customers still at a table. She opened the counter and began to count the coins inside and noting it on a slip. She looked up again, seeing that the other employees, milling around and casually talking amongst each other.

She sighed as she rested an arm on her belly.

“How done are you in there Ren?” She asked to her husband whose head was peering through the window from the kitchen.

“I’ve been wiping this bench for the past 20 minutes.”

Nora grinned manically as she shoved the piece of paper, she had been noting the money on, into his face.

“You finish it~”

“Nora!”

“I’m preggos Ren! Let me be!”

Nora happily skipped over to the friends and cleared her throat, “Hey you two~ I don’t know if you knew but we actually were planning to close the café earlier today.”

Weiss turned to Nora and tilted her head, “Where was this stated?”

Nora grinned as she pointed towards the piece of paper taped to the window, to alert customers that the cafe was closing earlier. The reverse of ‘5:30 pm’ was backlit by the sunset. Weiss stuttered stupidly as Ruby let out quiet laughter at her.

“Usually, we let you both stay till six but, a lot of us really want to go to that food truck festival tonight.”

Looking past the paper, the two friends observed the food trucks parked on the sides of the road and beginning to set up.

“Usually I’m patient but…”

“But she’s got cravings and been using that pregnancy card to her full advantage.”

Ren popped beside Nora, resting his arm upon his wife’s shoulders.

Weiss patted her lips with a tissue, “By the way, congratulations you two!”

“Yeah congrats guys!” Ruby pipped in.

Nora rolled her eyes, “Yeah, yeah. This little bugger’s a blessing and all but the festival gonna start soon!

* * *

The food festival was lively and crowded. The good kind of crowded.

The road in between the shops and neighbourhood was closed off, allowing for food trucks to set up on both sides, decorations and lights strung up overhead with tables and chairs nestled in cosy corners between trucks. People sat on the curb, munching on the variety of food that was offered tonight. Owners of the houses facing the shops and the food truck festival took advantage of their homes position, using their front yards as a private gathering space for friends and family to enjoy the different cultures of food piled onto paper plates and wrapped in cardboard coverings.

Ruby and Weiss once again were walking beside one another, within the thick of the crowd as they toured through all the food options. As more people came into the fray, the volume of the crowd caused the two to be pushed up against each other at their arms. To alleviate the uncomfortable pressure of the position, the two women had non-verbally agreed with loop their arms together, pulling each other to various trucks that interested them. Upon their cheeks, they were both very aware of the red flushes resting upon their cheeks.

Whether it was their intimate proximity with one another or if it was just the movement and warm air of the crowd… it was never addressed.

* * *

Ruby passed the bucket of curly fries down to Weiss, as she unceremoniously plopped on the usual left side of Weiss on the roof. On the other hand, Weiss busied herself with finding a stable position on the roof to place the bucket between them.

With a brief stretch of her arms from up above her, she reached into the fries and pulled out a long strand for herself.

“Well that was fun!”

Weiss nodded with a smile, as she looked behind them briefly to observe the lights from the food truck festival to light the line between the neighbourhood and the shops.

“We weren’t even there for the whole time and I am tired.”

“Hm, it says that it’s open till mwidight.” Ruby said as she chewed on a chip.

“Oh! Awmost fogwat!” Ruby exclaimed as she wiped her fingertips on the side of her jeans, taking out the packaged fairy lights.

“Please Ruby, at the very least don’t talk while your mouth it full… Hm, wait I’ve got a battery pack in here.”

Ruby grinned as Weiss dug into her bag, “Always so prepared, Weiss!”

“Well one of us has to be.”

Ruby stuck out a tongue at Weiss’ statement.

As Weiss continued to eat, Ruby pulled out the fairy lights and laid it across their laps. She pulled off the adaptor and plugged the USB head into the battery pack.

A warm glow emanated from their laps, softly lighting up their faces from below.

Ruby grinned in triumph as she reached for another chip, only to hear Weiss’ happy hums.

She watched as Weiss looked down at all the lights and in awe at the warm colour.

Ruby’s jaw slightly slackened as she froze at the scene.

Weiss, stuck in her own world reached for another chip, only to brush lightly against Ruby’s hand which had also froze and lazily dangled over the lip of the bucket.

They both looked up to meet the others’ eyes.

Ruby turned away, red to the face with an awkward chuckle.

Weiss quietly looked the other direction, face flushed as she giggled at the predicament.

Ruby’s lips turned into a tiny grin as she looked down upon on the lights in her laps. Then slowly, her face twisted into an expression of serious realisation. She pinched her expression, thinking through all the discussions and talks she had with her sister and Blake. With a burst of bravery and courage she cleared her throat.

“Weiss!”

The said woman flinched in her spot, as she turned towards Ruby with a confused expression, “… Ruby?”

Ruby’s heart hammered in her chest. All the attention was on her… those sapphire blue eyes not helping with her heart rate at all.

“You… you know how we both agreed to talk and open up to each other… especially when something was bothering us?”

“… Yes, I do remember that. It… it was raining.”

“Yes… it was… I…”

Ruby sputtered, the courage suddenly disappearing again. As she struggled to find the words, Weiss put a hand on Ruby’s shoulder.

“Hey, if it’s too much you don’t have to tell me. On that day we also agreed to respect our boundaries and limits.”

“But sometimes things need to be said, don’t they Weiss.”

Weiss mind briefly went back to the time they talked about her scar, “It was helpful… I suppose so… goodness, feelings are so contradictory and complicated.”

“I… I know. God I should really talk about this! I can’t put this off any longer!”

“… Ruby?”

“I LIKE YOU! I like you more than I should and it’s killing me inside!”

Weiss’s hand retreated from Ruby’s shoulder, she held it to her chest, “Ruby…”

The brunette sighed as she gathered her thoughts and emotions into coherent sentences, “For a while now, I first thought it was a small and shallow crush since I only met you this year… but god you are so damn amazing, kind! And yeah, I’ll admit you are sometimes a bit too prideful at times but gosh darn it! Learning more about you and what a beautiful person you are, just made me just fall for you even more! I… I…”

Ruby’s voice faded out as she realised that she got it out. She looked at Weiss, checking to see if she wanted to say anything.

She was still shocked.

Ruby, losing a bit of that courage, continued in a lower voice. She opted to look out at the neighbourhood as she continued.

“I knew I shouldn’t have these feelings. So… when I faced them, I decided to let it fade out, you know… So, every day that passed I hoped that I would stop noticing how smart you are, and how pretty your eyes look in the moonlight or how even your hair shines like some kind of moon goddess and-”

Ruby’s cheeks bloomed pink as she awkwardly coughed to force herself to rave on, “Anyways… it obviously didn’t go away… Gosh darn it, it obviously didn’t! Even today felt like a date and I felt so happy about that.”

Weiss’ eyes stayed wide open as she watched Ruby take a deep breath, trying to compose herself for the final stretch.

“But I know you are not interested in me like that. You have a boyfriend! It’s clear as day that you are not interested in me, nonetheless girls… I’m… sorry,” Ruby looked Weiss in the eye, “I’m sorry that I let this go so far and that I’m telling you right now but… It’s the only way I can move on from these feelings. By actually doing something about them…”

“Ruby… I can’t-”

“I don’t need you to accept! I’m not even expecting you returning it or something! I just needed you to know and…”

“Ruby, I can’t.”

Panic rose in Ruby’s eyes as she watched her friend scoot away from her. She watched as Weiss fumbled around with the fairy lights on her lap and abruptly pull out the plug in her battery pack, plunging both of them in darkness. The only source of light being the festival in the distance.

“I… I’m sorry.”

Weiss hastily got up from her position and clamoured her way to the entrance at the top of the roof, disappearing through the door.

“W… Weiss…” Ruby said weakly, as she heard the heiress rush out of the front door and around the long way to her house.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone!
> 
> Everything is ramping up!!!! I don't have much to say, except that I'm happy some of you are getting excited for this finale, I'm very excited to see what you all think.
> 
> Also, the artwork for this chapter is actually my favourite piece of work. While this chapter is a little angsty at the end, the food truck scene has always been a pretty scene! This artwork is specifically before the whole road got crowded so they haven't linked arms yet :3
> 
> Anyways, I hope you all have a great day and I'll see you all tomorrow :D


	33. Love Changes

* * *

**_Out of all lessons, this one is the most repeated. Everyone interviewed had all mentioned that love changes, and it can change from romantic to friend, friend to a familial love, from being there to no longer present._ **

* * *

Weiss focused on nails, letting her fingertips of her left hand feel the nail art she applied. She stopped in the middle of the sidewalk as her gaze fell on the rose decal, subconsciously she put on her fourth finger. Her cheeks began to warm up, and in an effort to stop it she nervously tried to scratch off the nail polish.

“Weiss? Is there something- WHOA! What are you doing?!” Neptune frantically asked as he paced back to Weiss and gently grabbed her hand, inspecting to see what had done.

Despite putting a layer of topcoat on it, she started to get one scratch to slash the corner of the art.

“This is so pretty, why are you trying to destroy it?”

“Um…” She looked to the side as she tugged her hand away from his hold, “Nothing to be concerned about…”

Neptune looked down Weiss with concern but shook it off as he placed a hand on her shoulder and pointed at a restaurant on the opposite street of the hustle and bustle of the city.

“Here we are!”

Weiss took a moment to read the name, and a minute to dig her brain for memories, “Oh! Our first date was here! Right?”

Neptune smiled, “Of course, and today I have organised our dinner here!”

“Hm…” Weiss glanced at her watch.

It was four.

“Sure… I guess it’s an early dinner today.”

* * *

Weiss moved the food on her plate, trying to figure out why she was served oysters and salad.

“Hm? What is the problem Weiss?”

She looked up to see Neptune looking at her inquisitively as she munched on his pasta.

“I… um… you said you organised this for us…”

“… Yes?”

“I… is there a meaning behind this dish?”

Neptune swallowed before he talked, “Oh. I thought you liked oysters and salad.”

“Oh.” Weiss looked down at her plate. “I did… didn’t I.”

“Wow. You really have changed…” Neptune cleared his throat, “So what would you like instead?”

Weiss eyed his dish, “Actually, I think I want what you are having.”

“Huh. That explains it.”

“What?”

“You were always stealing my pasta when we had dinner.”

“Well I like it.” She replied as she called a waitress over.

Neptune looked at her analytically, before his mouth morphed into a smile, “You definitely have changed.”

Weiss turned back to him, “Did you say something?”

“Oh, nothing to be concerned about.”

* * *

“Where are we going now?”

“Oh, you will see.”

Weiss raised an eyebrow at Neptune’s odd behaviour, “Alright…”

They proceeded to walk in a comfortable silence, Weiss’ hand feeling oddly aware and heavy in the palm of Neptune’s.

Letting her eyes wonder, they landed upon a claw machine perched perfectly near the corner. Her gaze remained on it, as they walked closer, her head continuing to face it as they continued to walk away.

“Eyes on the road.”

Weiss snapped herself out of her stupor, as Neptune pulled her back from the road crossing.

“It has not turned green yet.”

“Oh, sorry, that was my bad. I didn’t realise we were at a crossing.”

“You’ve been very distracted today… something on your mind? You can tell me.”

“It’s nothing to worry about.” Weiss dodged the question. “Where are we heading to anyways?”

Neptune just smiled at her as they both crossed the road when the little man blinked green.

Weiss looked up curiously before she heard the familiar sound of hooves kicking the ground and soft neighing.

She gasped as she let go of Neptune and ran towards the two horses in front of an open-air carriage. She looked at the gentle beasts with awe as the owner fed the horses hay and water.

“We… we are going horse riding?”

Neptune sauntered up from behind her, hands in his pockets, “Yes. I figured since you’ve been away from your home for a long time, you must’ve not have got any horse-riding in.”

“Of course! I miss Snowbell dearly. I hope that the stable hands kept their promises and are taking her out every day… Do you think that we can ride on their backs?”

“I wish we could. But I was already asking for a lot when I asked Belinda to let us on the carriage at sunset.”

“Huh.” Weiss looked towards the sky, the pinks and purples blending into a warm orange, “They do usually stop before the sun sets behind the horizon.”

* * *

Weiss gazed on the twinkling city lights that surround the park, which was lit warmly by the orange lamp head at each path’s corner. The horse peacefully huffed as it trotted on the path, the small bells attached to the reins jingling slightly with the movement.

She looked to her boyfriend who was peacefully enjoying the ambience, “This is lovely and all Neptune but… what is with this extravagant schedule, it’s nice but I would be happy with just being at home and baking together.”

Neptune nodded, but instead of responding he tapped on Belinda’s shoulder, “Just up ahead will be fine.”

Weiss tilted her head, “Another stop? This night is already exciting enough. To be honest, I’m starting to get a tad bit tired.”

Neptune chuckled, “Already? If I recall correctly, you have the ability to drag me around the shops for hours on end.”

With a teasing tone in her voice, she spoke, “If I recall, I haven’t been making you suffer through that in a while.”

Neptune hummed thoughtfully as he leaned on the armrest carriage, gazing to the trees of the park, “It has… hasn’t it.”

“Neptune… there is something bothering you, isn’t there?”

“Do you remember the times we used to sit by the stable? When Snowbell was let out into the paddock for a midnight stroll?”

“… Yeah?”

“We would always talk about anything and nothing, didn’t we?”

“Neptune…”

The carriage came to a slow stop. The driver turned around, with a beaming smile. Her smile however became strained as she tried to not cringe at the tense atmosphere around the couple. “Um… You have reached your destination?”

Neptune shook his head out of his trance, opening the door himself and then offering a hand to help Weiss down.

“Thank you, I’ll be sure to give you a good review.”

* * *

Weiss rubbed her arm as she stood by the window side of the elevator. Neptune was on the other side, gazing upon the cityscape that became more like a twinkling night sky as they were propelled gracefully up to the top of the tower.

She bit her lip nervously. She observed her boyfriend’s profile against the glass, as he seemingly was reflecting on something in his mind. The top of her lip quivered as she struggled to ask again what was bothering his mind the entire evening.

It was incredibly awkward.

And she definitely knew that Neptune can tell she was cracking under this invisible pressure.

She refocused on the city lights, as the elevator lurched slowly as it repositioned itself with the floor.

No.

She had to reminder herself. It seemed like Neptune was going to talk about it anyways.

A shadow covered the light that had poured in from the automatic door.

Neptune was standing in between, his silhouette casting over Weiss.

“Are you… going to come out?”

“Oh… Oh of course!”

She recovered from her dazed state of thoughts as she ushered herself out of the elevator and onto the Skydeck of the tower. There were a few couples and families gazing upon the city, to the closest possible point they can get to the edge. Neptune gestured at her to follow him into a glass corner, where people can see them, but further enough from everyone else that they can have a private conversation.

Weiss leaned onto the railing by the window of the tower, despite looking out the window of the elevator, all of it paled in comparison to having the wide expanse of the city, and suburbs further out, just surrounding her. Small water droplets making the city look like an Impressionist painting as it began to drizzle outside.

As she continued to gaze out, she heard the carpeted footsteps of Neptune walking beside her, then the slight creaking of the metal bar as he leaned on to it too.

“I know you are going to tell me something. This entire day hasn’t been exactly subtle.”

“Do you remember back then?”

“Back then?”

“Back even before we got together. When you were my best friend.”

“Were… I know we are together but aren’t we still best friends?”

Neptune continued, brushing over his statement.

“Back then, when we always were sneaking behind the maids and butlers’ backs. And don’t forget the frustration on your parent’s face when we were never where they wanted us to be.”

Weiss chuckled as she looked straight ahead at her reflection in the window, “Oh I remember those times!”

“Do remember what you always referred me as?”

“… My knight. I used to always say that you are my knight in shining armour.”

“Yeah, always… and I remember that I promised to show you the world! That once I saved you, that I’ll take to places that you’ve always wanted and let you live however you want.”

Weiss summoned a small smile, “Yeah, you always did say that.”

“Weiss…”

“Would… would you want me to be your knight forever?”

“Neptune?” Weiss asked in confusion as she turned to face him.

She gave out a light gasp as he was faced towards her, his right arm was resting on the handrail, his legs staggered as if he were kneeling in the air. His left extended out towards her… showing off a velvet box, closed to hide what was inside.

“Will… will you marry me Weiss?”

Weiss took a step back, “Neptune I… I…”

Weiss’ mind started to panic and become confuddled with thoughts, as she begun to overthink. Of course, this is meant to happen. She and Neptune were in a relationship and staying in one just means that inevitably they will get married. But why? Why in the world was she hesitating?

“Weiss.”

She felt the velvet box being pushed into her hand. She looked back up into Neptune’s eyes.

“Weiss, I’m not asking for an answer now. I know there are things going on, so I want you to figure out how you want to answer. And once you have it all thought out, then you can open the box, okay?”

“Neptune, I…” Weiss started as she began to lift the top of the lid.

“Just,” Neptune said as he clasped his hand over the box, preventing her from opening it, “Just… think about it first, okay?”

“Okay…”

Neptune gave her a strained smile, taking a step away from her, “Tell me, when you’ve made your decision.”

He gave a half-hearted wave as he turned his back from her, walking towards the elevator.

Weiss turned back towards the window; her feelings conflicted as she looked at the box.

A buzz came from her pocket.

**Neptune:** By the way, I called a taxi for you. It’s waiting at the front. I’m going to go with a friend.

Weiss grimaced awkwardly as she typed back.

**Weiss:** Thank you, Neptune.

She sighed, she needed someone to talk to.

* * *

As the rain pelted outside, Ruby was playing on her Switch.

Three knocks came from the door.

Closing the cap on the ice cream beside her, she nervously gulped as she paused her game. Only one person would knock precisely like that.

She walked towards her door, checking the mirror beside her to make sure she looked nice. This was going to be awkward.

Ruby slowly opened the door halfway, revealing a troubled Weiss facing down towards the mat.

“Um… hi.”

“Uh, hi? Are… are you okay? I thought when you left suddenly, that you didn’t want to talk to me anymore.”

“It’s… it has only been a week.”

“A week is kinda long for our friendship Weiss.”

“I… just needed someone to talk to… for advice.”

Ruby opened the door fully, “Are you okay? You look very, um… Even if we are on odd terms right now, we are best friends.”

“I… Neptune… He proposed to me.”

“Oh,” Ruby looked to her feet as her left hand went back to grip the handle of the door, “I… congratulations Weiss…”

“No! I mean,” Weiss brought the box from her dress pocket and began to fumble with it in her hands, “He proposed, but I didn’t answer. So, he gave me the ring to hold and some time to figure things out.”

“So…?”

“So…”

“… Weiss, why are you telling me this? This is your relationship, not mine.”

“It’s because you are important to me Ruby! We tell each other everything.”

“… You… you shouldn’t be saying things like that to me.”

“… uh, why? You are my best friend, of course you are important.”

“You shouldn’t because my heart goes all mushy and loud! And then you hit me with lines like that! And I realise that all of these stupid feelings are just going nowhere!”

Weiss took a step back, “I…”

Ruby stuttered as she realised her outburst, her right hand clutched the end of her shirt, “Did you forget that I confessed to you? And that you just left and said nothing to me for a week.” A tear escaped her left eye and she hastily wiped it away. “What do you want from me?”

“I just wanted advice…”

“Really now?” Ruby huffed bitterly as she looked at anything but Weiss. However, she stayed put, allowing Weiss to ask anyways.

Weiss looked at the box in her hand. Her heart hurt; she never had been on this bitter side of Ruby before. She’s only ever seen it once when Yang was leaving for New York.

“I… I don’t know how to answer… What… what to say to Neptune…”

Ruby sighed, as she wiped her left eye again, “Look Weiss, I absolutely still care about you. But asking me a question like this is gonna get you something biased.”

Ruby looked at the box, then sighed, “Weiss… This one is your choice. Not mine. My answer should not matter with this anyways…”

She pulled the door halfway, “Goodnight.”

“… Goodnight Ruby.”

With a gentle click, the wooden door closed quietly.

Not wanting to linger longer, Weiss began her route towards her house. Her eyes tearing up the first time that night, tears indistinguishable from the rain falling from above. She… needed Ruby, but this is the one time she cannot.

Unbeknownst to her, a brunette had slid down the door towards the floor, her eyes watering up silently as soundless hiccupping racked through her body.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone!
> 
> So, things just got even worse :/
> 
> Thanks for all the support and excitement for the future of this series! I'll be sure to add some information about the next part of it in the last chapter :3
> 
> Other than that, I've got to go to bed, so I'll see you all tomorrow!!!


	34. Family and Friends

* * *

**_This interconnected web of relationships in ‘The Love Story of Ruby Rose and Weiss Schnee’ displays a plethora of different connections and dynamics between all members. However, one of the most common and treasured dynamic full of love are the ones from family and friends… who are always there at the most vital times._ **

* * *

Weiss sat on her leather couch facing the coffee table in the middle of the living room.

In front pot of flowers in the centre, the black velvet box stared hauntedly back at her.

As she picked her nails and wrung her hands in thought, she heard insistent knocks echoing down the hallway.

With a curious tilt of her head, she got up to answer the door. She was not expecting anyone today, did Neptune get too impatient?

As she unlocked and open the door she was shoved to the side.

“YANG INCOMING!!!!”

Weiss stumbled as she gripped to the doorknob for stability, as her blonde friend stomped through the house and made herself comfortable.

“Um Yang? What are you doing here?”

She walked back to the living room to see Yang stretched out across the couch munching on a bunch of peanuts. Weiss sighed as she gingerly knelt in front of the coffee table, even closer to the box.

“And why in the world did you bring a bunch of peanuts here? If you want to eat and bother someone, do that somewhere else.”

“Ouch. Haven’t seen you reach these cold temperatures in a while. I thought we were friends.”

“Yang.”

“Hmph, if you want to skip to the chase, I’m eating these peanuts because this whole situation is just driving me nuts.”

Weiss groaned.

Yang used her thumb to wipe a bit of salt stuck near the corner of her mouth, “No… I’m serious Weiss,” She moved to sit up and rest her right arm on the armrest, “This morning I come over to visit my little sister so we I can have breakfast together like old times, and instead I’m greeted with a zombie, who in random just starts sobbing into pillows. Much more tragically than what she has been doing for the past week.”

Weiss froze, “I… I didn’t know…”

“Gosh woman, you are so oblivious to how others feel at times.”

“Hey! I know how to comfort people when they need it. If I’m correct I am the person who got Ruby to talk to you before your flight.”

Yang frowned, “Not what I’m talking about ice queen. I mean how your actions affect other people. You’re very observant, but I’ll admit that sometimes even you are too self-centred.”

“Hey!” Weiss angrily growled.

Yang was taken aback for a moment, maybe she was being a bit too salty for this conversation.

She sighed, “I’m not here to target you, sorry.” She watched as Weiss’ irritation slowly released from her form.

The velvet box…

“Hey, that’s the ring?”

Yang went to grab and see what Neptune got for her but was intercepted by Weiss who snatched the box to her chest.

“I just wanted to see it.”

“Well, I have not even seen it for myself yet.”

Yang’s eyes widened, “Wow, you really are still confused.”

“That is the reason why I went to Ruby’s.”

Yang shook her head, “Nope. Even from my perspective, that is definitely not the right call.”

“She… she just the first person that came into mind because I was so confused. Argh, I don’t know how to organise this, or what do, and even who to ask!”

“You know… you could’ve asked me? Even Blake would have been happy to give advice. It definitely would have been better than asking Ruby who, if I recall, had recently confessed to you and been left hanging instead of been given an actual answer.”

Weiss panicked, “Um… w-what confession?”

“Ruby told me right after the whole thing happened.”

Weiss’ panic had simmered into an aura of loneliness, as she explained.

“Even so, Ruby is my connection to both of you. It would… feel kind of odd to ask any of you such a personal question.”

“Weiss, we still would’ve been friends if Ruby wasn’t the catalyst. It just would have taken longer. Stop thinking about all these formalities that you are… conjuring from the depths of your confused mind!”

Weiss was silent, fumbling with the box in her hands.

Yang sighed, “If it’s so personal for you, let me break that stupid wall. Just tell me why.”

“Why?”

“Why didn’t you say anything to Ruby that week ago on the rooftop?”

“This… this isn’t really something you should be butting into.”

“But this is my sister I’m talking about. And I’m very concerned. And you were afraid of personal, so lemme just barge in then.”

Weiss looked up into Yang’s eyes defensively, “What would you want me to say then?” Weiss bitterly spat, “I honestly don’t know!”

Yang arched an eyebrow, “You don’t know? An action is basically a million words! Why did you run away from my sister that night?!”

“I told you, I DO NOT KNOW!”

“Well, your cluelessness is hurting my sister! And apparently you both agreed to be open, and you basically just shut her comfort in you back into the closet again!”

“I didn’t mean to!! I just, I just… I just freaked out, something in me got spooked!”

“Was it because a gay girl got a crush on you and you went all homophobic on our asses?!”

“NO!” Weiss shouted, “I would never! Ridiculing someone because of their sexuality is something I would never intend to do! I… it hit too close… I, fluttering… I don’t know what I…” Weiss drifted off, her eyes welling up with water. Her breaths became shallow, as she held a hand to her lips to cover her mouth.

Yang sprung out of her seat, kneeling on the floor on her side of the coffee table. She clinked her nails on the glass to grab Weiss’ attention, “I’m sorry, I… I didn’t mean to go that far Weiss… I jumped to conclusions. There’s obviously something you are battling with. Even if it sounds like you don’t know what it is yourself. Listen to my voice.”

Weiss looked to Yang, taking measured breaths to push the tears back down and compose yourself.

“I’m sorry princess, I’m not meant to be here to grill or target you. My big sister instincts just kicked and took the steering wheel. Sorry.”

“I… Yang, do not worry.” She took another deep breath in and out, “You are her sister, of course you would be protective.” A longing expression on her face as she wiped her eyes, “Never apologise for loving your sister.”

Yang looked sadly at Weiss, there was something more to this… but as much as she wanted to help, it was not her place and frankly not the reason she came to talk to Weiss. Wait, her reason…

“Oh Weiss, it still isn’t right for me to push you to the brink of tears. God I shouldn’t be the one here, I’m too hot headed at times.”

Weiss placed the box back on to the table to properly face Yang.

“Why… why are you here then?”

“I… just wanted to help, ya know?”

“Help?”

“With this whole situation.” Yang sighed, “And no, not the one with Rubes, but the one with Neptune.”

Weiss’ eyes widened, “Really?”

“Weiss, believe it or not, we all care about you. You’re like a sister to me and Blake.”

Weiss’ eyes softened at that statement.

“And, as you mentioned before, you usually come to Ruby about these things… but since a week ago, you’ve been alone haven’t you. I’m not blind Weiss, even I know we are currently your closest friends. And your connection to Ruby or not, we are care about you and want to help you.”

Yang stopped as she heard Weiss sniffle a little at the statement. Yang rolled her eyes affectionately before continuing.

“If you want advice, I’m happy to give it. Being an outsider from this whole… thing, I think I know how to talk you through this.”

Weiss wetly chuckled, before assuming her usual straight posture. Yang grinned, happy to have gotten Weiss’ mood up again.

Weiss sarcastically replied “Well, aren’t you so full of yourself.”

Ah, there she is.

Yang got a sneaky glimmer in her eye, “Weiss, you are not the only observant person in this group. If it has not been obvious, I am clearly the mum of the group. I know when things are up.”

Unimpressed, Weiss arched her eyebrow.

“Come on, let me just try.”

She sighed as she faced the box again and leaned her on hand, “… Sure.”

Yang smiled in triumph at herself. Making a mental note.

Step 1: Getting Weiss to open up. Check.

“Alright, what did the proposal make you feel?”

“This is your ground-breaking advice?”

“Weiss. Come on…”

“… Confused.”

“Did you even see this coming? Like did you have a feeling he was going to propose soon?”

“No, not really.”

“Hmm…”

“Hmm?” Weiss mimicked incredulously, “That is all you have to say?”

“Haha nope, it’s just… usually when a healthy couple is ready for engagement, they are at least on the same terms and same ideologies about getting married. Sure, it can be surprising that someone is proposing to you, but at least you should already know the answer. The strong couples that end up being married their lifetime at least already know it was coming and what their answers were before it happened.”

“Healthy couple? Of course, me and Neptune are a happy couple! What are you trying to insinuate?”

“Exactly what came to mind… are you really a happy couple? Because from my observations I saw you leading your boyfriend on just like you were with Ruby.”

“Leading them on?! I-I was doing nothing of the sort! Neptune and I have been together for over a year! How am I leading him on? And Ruby just confessed to me recently! This is all a new development!”

“Well to you it is. But Ruby started crushing on you early on and tried to kill those feelings ‘cause she also treasured you as a friend. But then you kept being flirty around her despite how ‘straight’ you appear.”

“Flirty?!”

Yang gave her a lazy look, “Okay unintentionally flirty, but don’t even get me started on Neptune. You kept gravitating towards Rubes while all he was left to do was watch you talk and centre your attention around her.”

“I gave him attention.” Weiss protested.

“Yeah, but even I know that you probably mentioned Ruby too often during those dates.”

“…”

“Hah. Right in the bullseye.” Yang shifted herself as she took some time to put the bag of peanuts on the table, “Do you even love him?”

“… Neptune?”

“Of course! Who else would I be talking about?”

“…”

“Weiss… the fact that you had to confirm it was Neptune is a telling sign that something’s up.”

“I… the word ‘love’ is a huge step.”

“You’ve been in the relationship for more than a year, you are already past a ‘huge step’.”

“It… just does not feel right…”

“Why would that be?”

“Because…”

Yang leaned closer to the armrest, hoping Weiss was reaching the conclusion which has been obvious from a while ago.

“Because… I don’t love him… I…” Weiss groaned as she placed her forehead on the table in exasperation, “I… have been stringing him along. I’m such a horrible person.”

Yang sighed, as she pulled out her hand and gave Weiss a warm pat on the shoulder, “Breathe Weiss, breathe…”

Step 2: Sort Weiss’ feelings about Neptune. Check.

“I did think I like him at first but… oh… oh God.”

Yang reeled her hand and straightened up… Weiss never cursed like this.

“I… I like Ruby.” She said, her blue eyes widening.

Yang’s eyes bulged, “Whoa, I thought I would need a lot more to pry that confession outta your mouth. I wasn’t even planning to talk to you about that anyways.”

“AHHHH I LIKE RUBY?!” She exclaimed, tugging the ends of her hairs shock.  
  


Yang, unsure what to do from her side of the table picked and threw a nut at her arms, making the woman stop her habit and make eye contact with her.

“Um… it seems so?”

“It… earlier when I… no Weiss, another time.” Weiss spoke to herself.

Yang tilted her head in curiosity at that line.

Weiss however pushed on, “But… but it makes so much sense!” Weiss exclaimed as she got up and began pacing in front of Yang, her freak out from the first part of the conversation forgotten for this revelation.

“I am always thinking about her, what she likes, that this reminds me of her. Where she would love to hang out next, what her favourite food are… I even started playing Pokémon just so I can contribute to her rants about generation 8!”

“Okay it seems that you are just pointing out everything for me.” Yang added, her voice lost within Weiss’ ramblings.

“The visits… I even let her jump over my fence instead of going the long way around like a normal person! Goodness…” Weiss blushed as she murmured, “Well this explains the dreams I have been getting for a while now.”

“WAIT! Back it up! You’ve been dreaming about my little sis?!”

Weiss waved her off as her mutters became inaudible, as she started another decent into her mind.

Yang shook off the protective sister instincts that sprung up… she was here for Weiss right now… and frankly they were getting off topic.

Step 3: The verdict. In progress.

“Um… as, uh, enlightening this moment is for you… There is one loose thread you’ve got to sew up.” Yang interrupted as she pointed to the ring box sitting alone at the table.

Weiss froze for a moment, following Yang’s finger.

“Ahem, right.” Weiss clarified as she got out of her hunched position.

She approached the box, and with finesse she scooped it up into her hands.

“So… what are you gonna do?”

Weiss tilted her head at the box. She picked it up, smiling sadly at the life with Neptune she may have had, if she actually would have wanted it. Weiss rubbed the velvet, before placing it back down on the table. Neptune does not deserve a life in which her heart would be somewhere else.

“He said to open it when I had decided my answer…” She glanced to Yang, “But I presume he thought I would say yes.”

Yang slowly nodded.

“I… I need to talk to him.”

“… yes and?”

“And I will return this. I am not worthy of this at all.” Weiss said, breathing out in relief.

She looked down back at the box, her eyes filling up with determination, “And I know exactly how to do this, I at least need to do this eloquently thanks to my utter stupidity through this mess.” She threw the box to Yang, fishing a phone out of her skirt pocket and dialling a number.

Weiss then stopped her actions for a moment, before glancing back at Yang, “… Thanks, I really needed this.”

Yang grinned, “Happy to help, wish I could’ve done it without that little… freak out from earlier, but you’ve wormed yourself into our life Weiss. Whether you’ve done something bad or not, we are gonna make sure you have someone in your corner. Or at least someone to set you ‘straight’ when you get too stuck in that head of yours.”

Weiss smiled once again, her heart filling up with a warmth she had not felt since she last saw Klein.

“Hello this is Weiss Schnee… Ah, you remember me… Well can I reserve a seat for two at…”

Yang chuckled and shook her head, “Ah, to the point and determined. Weiss is back.”

Step 4: Help Weiss get on her feet. Goal achieved.

* * *

In the Rose household, Ruby and Blake were seated opposite each other at the kitchen table. Drinking tea and coffee as they existed in a comfortable silence.

Ruby arched her eyebrow at the inaudible shouting she heard from her backdoor neighbour from her seat at the kitchen table.

Blake chuckled as she placed her cup of tea with a clunk against the hard wood, “Don’t worry about that Ruby, Yang knows what she’s doing.”

Ruby choked on her drink as she forced it down her throat, “I’m sorry what?!”

Blake shrugged as she lifted her mug for another sip.

Ruby groaned as she leaned back in her chair exaggeratedly, “I knew this was too good to be true. This is an ambush.”

Blake pondered for a moment, “With Yang’s brashness… maybe… but for me this is a… checking in.”

“Have I been acting weird? I think I’m fine…”

“Ruby you’ve been lamenting about fictional couples on your streams more often than usual.”

“You’ve been watching my streams?”

“How else are Yang and I going to check on you if you’re not answering your door.” Blake deadpanned as she poked Ruby in the forehead for further emphasis.

“Ow my brain! I’m still waking up!”

“… It’s 2 in the afternoon.”

“Yang tried calling me at 8am, then barges in! I was too emotional to be awake, so I took a… really long nap?”

Another silence ensued between them.

“Hey,” Blake glanced at the fence and back to Ruby, “We’re back at it again.”

“Hmm?” Ruby followed Blake’s actions, “Oh… I guess we are…” She grasped the photo frame of Zwei on the table, “But… a lot has changed since the start of the year.”

“That it has…” Blake remarked, as she rubbed her finger on the Christmas-themed art of the mug, “Do you regret it? What you told her a week ago.”

“I can’t run from the truth. Hoping it would go away… it can’t work anymore.”

Blake sighed, “I’m sorry… I think I gave you bad advice back then.”

“No! I think you were right… it’s just that the crush back then… isn’t a crush anymore.”

“… The one thing we both didn’t want to happen.”

“Yeah, but what can I do about it? I told her I liked her and now I think our friendship has been Thanos-d out of existence.”

“… that was a terrible attempt in changing the topic.”

“Okay! Well what else is there to talk about?” Ruby puffed out in aggravation, as she crossed her arms in frustration.

“Well… since we are adults and not hormonal and impulsive teens, you have got to talk to her.”

“But I don’t want to~”

“Your pout doesn’t work on me.”

“Dammit!”

“But really Ruby, you have to talk to her. Whether your friendship stays alive or not, you both at least need closure in whole situation. I don’t think you should be worried about losing her anyways; you know Weiss is not that kind of person.”

“Blake, she literally had avoided me for a week before yesterday.”

“Personally, I think she is just overwhelmed right now… and just can’t function properly.”

Ruby shuffled her feet under the table as she looked at her reflection in the coffee.

“And what if it does end badly.”

“We are here for you Ruby. You don’t have to tackle pain alone.”

Ruby stared at the sad smile in her reflection, “Yeah… I know, someone very important to me taught me that.”

She continued to look at her coffee, her face then frowning. Ruby took her coffee, walking over to the living room.

Blake rose an eyebrow, grabbing her mug and joining Ruby on the couch as the brunette flicked through channels on the cable TV.

“You good there, Ruby?”

Ruby hummed, as she took a sip of her coffee, “Yeah… just wished everything go back to before I confessed. Everything is just ramping up ever since that happened.”

Blake grabbed the remote, “Hey, it’s not your fault. Weiss reacted in that way, still not sure why she would be like that since she’s been pretty supportive of all of us… but my words still stand that it was never your fault.”

Ruby stole the remote, staring at the TV instead of Blake, “I… I’d rather have Weiss as a friend more than anything. I shouldn’t have said anything, losing her would be devastating… it’s already feeling pretty bad, and she’s only been on and off about her thoughts and everything. I royally screwed up Blake.”

“Ruby telling her and being honest is one of the healthiest things you’ve done, it’s been building up, and frankly… whether you like it or not, this kinda needs to happen.”

Ruby sighed, as she bumped shoulders with Blake and looked down at her coffee, “I appreciate you trying to help Blake, but this week has been emotionally draining and I need a breather. I just need you to be here… and I think Yang knows that too. She knows she a little too smothering at times, and it doesn’t help with how chaotic this whole month is shaping up to be.”

“… Of course Ruby, you need a friend right now… not a glorified magic 8 ball.”

Ruby nodded gratefully as she settled on reruns of show she barely watched, huddled next to Blake in the underlying fear of what is to happen to her and Weiss’ relationship.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone!
> 
> I will say, I'm surprised quite a few people on this and the other site thought Weiss was going to talk to Blake, I guess they've been getting closer but, I wanted to write parallels based on how Blake talked to Ruby at the beginning of the year so yeah.
> 
> And let me say, I love reading all your comments on your thoughts on this whole situation! Like, somehow I just got you all to really not like Weiss the past few chapters, and at first I was confused to why... but, then I remembered that I already know stuff, which makes her reaction, while terrible, makes sense... and you guys only know what I've shown you so your reactions also makes sense. 
> 
> This series has been focused a lot more on Ruby's development, and Weiss' opening up to her new life, but I realised that I actually only revealed small parts of Weiss old life compared to Ruby's backstory (I'll talk more about this in the last chapter).
> 
> This chapter obviously implied there is something more, and I'm actually really curious to any theories you guys have to what it may be 🤔
> 
> Anyways, it seems odd that the next chapter is the last one for this part of the series, but it is literally bordering on almost 5,000 words. Believe it or not I'm still editing it cause I'm trying to make everything flow, but fear not, I will upload it tomorrow so get ready! I'll see you all tomorrow then :D


	35. Love is Letting Go

* * *

**_Love is many things; however, a true testimony of love is being able to let go… as it shows that you care about the person’s wellbeing rather than your own wants. There are many moments in this love story where letting go is the only option, but this is the first one taken._ **

* * *

It was the next day, and the sun was beginning to set. Ruby grumbled at her sister’s aggressive tugs as she was dragged out of the car and behind a large stone in the restaurant’s front garden.

“Why are we hiding in a random restaurant’s garden? I thought we were going to the movies.” Ruby said as she fixed her footing in her crouch.

Yang shushed Ruby, Blake gesturing her to lower her voice.

“Just look sis.” Yang harshly whispered as she pointed at something beyond the rock.

Ruby looked and her eyes widened at the sight of Weiss, looking perfect as ever, standing at the base of the restaurant’s stairs.

“Let me get you up to speed. So yesterday I talked with- wait where are you going?” Yang asked in confusion as her sister began to stand up from their hiding space and walk directly towards the heiress.

“Blake why is she doing that!”

“I told her to talk to her… but I didn’t mean now…”

“God dammit Blake!”

The whispers faded as Ruby got closer to Weiss.

Weiss was looking down in thought, murmuring a rehearsal of some sorts that Ruby did not understand at all.

“Ahem.”

Weiss look up and jolted in surprise, “Ruby!”

“… Hey.”

“W-what are you doing here?”

Ruby awkwardly chuckled as she rubbed the back of her neck and jerked her left thumb to the rock behind her.

“My sister and Blake are hiding behind the rock.”

“Ah… dragged here I’m guessing?”

“Yeah um… well… I wanted to say…”

_“I’m sorry!”_

The both looked at each other. Weiss looked around, and then gestured Ruby to go first.

“Um… yeah I just wanted to say sorry about my bluntness back then… You were confused and I wasn’t helping.”

“Ruby… you don’t have to be sorry at all. If anything, it’s my fault I was confused and then decided to dump such as heavy burden on you… especially with how I treated you.”

Ruby paused for a moment, slightly shaking her head at the negative thought polluting her mind, “… That thing you asked about that night… you’re giving your answer tonight, right? Is that why my sister and Blake brought me here to spy on you?”

“Yeah… and about that please tell them to stop spying on me.” Weiss added in, glaring at the rock.

“Sure…” Ruby then took a deep breath, “I just wanted to tell you that… I’ll support you no matter what.” She sucked in a breath as she managed out the next set of words, “Even if you don’t want to be friends… that’s fine.”

“… support? Wait, did Yang not tell you everything? Ruby! Come back I haven’t even finished my…”

“Weiss?” A new voice said.

Weiss turned to see Neptune, beside his parked car, “Oh Neptune. You are finally here!”

“Weiss… was that Ruby? Why did she disappear behind that rock?”

Weiss sighed as she looked longingly back at the rock. She closed her eyes to collect her thoughts, before she opened them to look at Neptune.

“Don’t worry about it… I will handle that after our talk.”

* * *

“Ruby what the hell?!” Yang shouted quietly as they watched Neptune and Weiss walk up the stairs.

“I said what I needed to say.”

“Ruby, that at all was not what I was meaning when I said _talk_.” Blake whispered exasperatedly. “From here it just looked like you were saying stuff to Weiss and then just left. I meant an actual conversation instead of getting all these misunderstandings and confusion.”

“I… Neptune was there so I had to get my thing out and leave.”

Blake facepalmed, as Yang pulled at her hair.

“That. Is. Why. We. Are. Hiding. Behind. This. Rock.”

“About that… Weiss said to stop spying on her.”

“Rubes! Wasn’t hiding behind a rock enough to know not to blab it out!”

“I just want to go home and eat ice cream, crouching here is making my feet hurt.” Ruby complained as she shuffled her feet to relieve the ache.

Yang turned to Blake with a face that looked like her soul was just sucked out of her body, “Why is she not getting that Weiss’ romantic life is on the line here!?”

“… It’s not as dramatic as that since you already know the answer.”

“Blake just back me up here for once. I’m here to the novelty of shenanigans with you two.”

Yang then got closer and whispered into Blake’s ear, “Also to make sure Weiss somehow doesn’t self-sabotage herself.”

“Guys… they’re on the balcony…” Ruby stated as she pointed to the couple, before she turned around and sat against the rock instead of spying.

Yang scooched closer to the rock and peered over, “Yes! Just like planned. And if I’m right she can’t see us from here~”

Blake rolled her eyes as she joined the sisters, “Sure… you totally weren’t there when Weiss was planning all this.”

“Blake you are really cramping my suave nature. And Rubes, if you are gonna be all goody-two-shoes and not look. I’m just gonna narrate everything to you instead… _Right before us, the ice queen is on the prowl, with the habitat full of table manners, she’s got this prey in the bag…_ ”

“Ruby can you just please turn around and pretend you’re watching to save me from my suffering… Ruby?”

The said brunette was looking off into the distance, past the park and into the town at the other side.

Blake looked over her concerningly, still confused at Ruby’s reaction… Yang hadn’t told them Weiss’ answer… but she at least thought Ruby would be a little invested in Weiss after the talk they had from the day before.

Her eyes lingering on Ruby’s form for one last second, before she turned towards the balcony, and watched as she was subjected to Yang’s over-the-top narration.

_“And alas! The silence is finally broken, as Neptune initiates the conversation…”_

* * *

“So… I guess it is full circle here… I honestly thought you would call me for us to meet at a café or something… not this fancy restaurant, especially from our one-year anniversary.”

“Well, it felt… right to do so here. Not to mention they do serve delicious food here.” Weiss said as she looked through the menu.

Neptune looked around, “… Are we really going to be eating here? Honestly, I’m not in the mood for a 3-course meal…” His eyes then landed on the rock, where he saw a tuff of yellow hair sticking out, before another hand shot up and pushed it down.

“Of course not, I was only looking for a drink… I’m covering for today if you want one too.” Weiss looked up from her menu, and followed his gaze, “I see you noticed them. To be fair Ruby was not even trying to hide.”

“It… doesn’t bother you?”

“No… after spending months with them you get used to their weird antics. Even though I said something to Ruby, I know her sister wasn’t going to follow through.”

“… Blake’s there too? She’s the most level-headed other than you.”

“Oh, that bookworm is the enabler. She is more of chaotic neutral if anything.”

“… Chaotic neutral?”

“Nevermind that. Just an inside joke between Ruby and I.” She glanced back at the pensive expression on his face, “If it truly bothers you, I can throw one of the scones at them? Maybe that will scare them away, since Yang and Ruby hate it when food is wasted…”

“Oh, I don’t mind… they do not have malicious intent… and I guess I’ll just let them be playful?”

Weiss raised an eyebrow at his answer, “Sure…” She trailed off, as a waitress came up to their table and took their orders for drinks.

As the lady walked away, Weiss started, “Alright… so down to business… With how… calm you’re being, I’m guessing you think you know what I’m going to say…”

“Um… if you’re confused about the ring, I have reasons-”

“Confused? No, I didn’t even open the box.”

“… You didn’t open the box?”

“Yes, that is correct… I… I am not worthy of whatever ring you chose in there, because I have been a very confused and unsure person in this relationship… so I’ll have to say no. No, I will not marry you.”

The two heard clinks of glasses being placed in front of them, before the lady scurried away.

“… It seems we have scared her.”

“More like your statement did Weiss.”

Weiss shook her head out of the stupor from the waitress’ interruption as she continued, “So as I was saying, I know you repeatedly told me you love me but despite that… I will not marry you… I never even said I love you back at you.”

“I did well notice Weiss.” Neptune said with a sad smile.

Weiss looked at him with uncertainty… he was weirdly okay with this. Nevertheless, she continued, “This is why I brought you here today. Despite my misgivings, you have tried your best at this relationship. Putting up with my lack of trying and abhorrent behaviour… so I thought the way to end this was in an amicable get together with drinks.” She stated as she pushed the velvet box towards his side of the table, the uncomfortable weight in her pocket was finally gone.

“That… that sounded really rehearsed.”

Weiss gave him a hard stare before her shoulders slacked from their rigid state, “Fine, you have caught me. I was trying to compose the nicest way to let you down. I spent all of yesterday evening ‘freaking out’ and trying to figure out my words. This was the best I came up with.”

“Hm, this was the best? Very anticlimactic if you asked me. If I proposed to you months ago and you replied with this, I very well would have been angry and emotional.” He chuckled as he brought his alcoholic beverage to his lips, “That was by no means a ‘nice’ way of letting me down.”

Weiss shot him a stare, “You are being weirdly calm with this. You wanted to marry me, and I just turned you down.”

He gave another simple smile and pushed the velvet box back to her side of the table, “Did you not remember? I said to open it when you had your answer.”

“… But the answer is a no.”

“It’s an answer nonetheless... Just open it Weiss.”

Weiss gave him one last uncertain look before she took the box and opened.

She gasped.

It was empty.

“I… there’s no ring… if you bought one, I swear I didn’t steal it … I’m not sure how I lost it… Goodness! It must be somewhere in the house… maybe Cakes got into it or something…”

Neptune started to openly laugh as he put his hands up in a coaxing gesture, “Weiss! Don’t worry, you lost nothing. The box truly is empty!” He sighed in amusement, “I never bought a ring.”

“You… you never bought a ring?”

“Yes, that is correct.” Neptune parroted with a grin.

“I… don’t understand. I… why would you propose with this, and not have a ring… ugh I am so confused.”

Neptune leaned over and pushed the lid close to the box, the snap sending a wave through Weiss’ hand.

“Weiss, I always knew you were going to say no. I knew this proposal was going to be the end of our relationship.”

“But… you’ve been saying I love you to the end… was it all an act? Just to watch all my blunders?”

“No, I never intended that Weiss… I was being honest with the I love yous. I also was just making sure that this was going to happen.”

He shifted himself to sit up, “Weiss… I always known, for a few months now that our relationship was going downhill.”

“For a few months? How did you see it? We still went on dates and we barely fought…”

“Weiss, I have eyes… and even I could see that you weren’t fully in the relationship. Cancelling date plans last minute to help friends, our change in dynamic… also the fact you always talk non-stop about Ruby on half of our dates.”

Weiss froze, “… why do people keep pointing out Ruby?” She blushed a light pink, “B-but how is she relevant?”

It was Neptune’s turn to shoot back one of Weiss’ signature eyebrow raise, “It’s obvious you are slowly getting infatuated with her.”

“Infatuated?! That… I!” Weiss took a few breaths, before giving up with a sigh, “Does everyone know about that? I myself did not even know about that.”

“Well you both were being extremely obvious.”

Weiss groaned as she cradled her forehead between her index and thumb, “Alright I understand, you’ve got most of me figured out.” She then looked up in curiousity in her eyes, “But why propose to me then? Why couldn’t you just go with the most logical and efficient way by just us talking?”

“I tried Weiss… quite a few times actually.”

“You… you did?”

“Yes, in some of our dates… but you were so enraptured with your Ruby stories that I just ended up listening to you rant and fawn over her.”

“I do not-”

“Maybe after this you need Blake or Yang to record you talking to her, you are smitten Weiss.”

“… You couldn’t… I don’t know… get my attention? We wouldn’t have to go this far if you did.”

“… I was scared.”

“Seriously Neptune? How did I not know that you are extremely bad with communication? We’ve been together for well over a year.”

“Well we have been a pretty perfect couple until recently. At first, I thought it was a good sign that we were extremely compatible… however then things I should have seen coming, such as you wanting to move out, get a job and be independent… those really caught me off guard. I tried to be as supportive as I could, but even then, I could tell something was off with our relationship. With you making new friends and meeting Ruby just really amplified this mystery in our relationship… also you kind of run away from your problems.”

“Okay… wait what was that last bit?” Weiss eyed him suspiciously.

“Well… even if I called out the issues… uh… you would have redirected the conversation or change topic entirely. Confronting you with the actual possibility that you could be stuck with me forever was the best bet…” Neptune said, his eyes and tone becoming bitter towards the end.

Weiss groaned again as she looked down into her drink, “We both suck at relationships, don’t we? Both of us are to blame here.”

Neptune twirled his drink before taking a last chug, “We are both dramatic.” A waiter walked past, “Sir can I have a refill?”

The man nodded as he took the glass and walked away.

“I also guess I was a little scared…” Weiss started, “Being in a relationship was… comfortable, I did not have to worry about needing to find someone.”

“Not that you needed to.”

“Of course, but I always envisioned in having a family… don’t give me that weird look, I always have.”

“Well I’ll admit that it is odd, many people struck you for an independent woman who can take the world by storm alone.”

“… I actually hate being alone.”

“Hmmm,” Neptune accepted the new glass of alcohol, “It’s good we are breaking this off then, I’m actually not all that interested in a family.”

“… So that it?”

“What else is there to discuss?”

“I don’t know, it feels so anticlimactic.”

“Oh, do you want to slap me or something? I can slam the table and just storm out.”

Weiss tilted her head, “I… break ups in university always seemed so anger driven.”

“Weiss, we both know it’s our fault… if we got together sooner or maybe later in life… it may have worked.”

“But it just… simply didn’t.”

Neptune nodded at Weiss elaboration, “Life isn’t always a knight saving his princess in a tower. Sometimes… it’s just two adults who care enough to realise that the princess is fine on her own, and she can find and decide her own happiness."

Weiss stayed silent, soaking in Neptune’s expression. His eyes were glassy with memories of the past obviously replaying before him. However, when he shook himself out of the stupor, he shot Weiss a reassuring smile that held little to no remorse. He felt this was the right move too.

Weiss gave him a sad but nostalgic smile as she rose her glass up, some alcohol left in, “To breaking up?”

Neptune chuckled as he brought his glass to meet her’s in the middle, “To breaking up.”

They both shared a relieved smile and they reeled back and sipped.

* * *

“They are breaking up!” Yang shouted in a whisper as she did a little dance in her crouch.

Blake rolled her eyes, “Don’t go acting like you didn’t know this would happen.” She turned to check on Ruby. “So, Weiss is single… what’s your plan of action?”

Ruby sighed as she got up, “I’m gonna go home. Don’t worry about me, I’ll take a bus.”

“Sis! Blake just said she’s single! She said no!!! They are breaking up as we speak!”

Yang grumbled as she watched her sister walk away, “We brought her here so she can discover the answer and they can have that stupid happily ever after they’ve been dancing around.”

Blake shrugged, “Nothing is as simple as that.” She then looked to Ruby’s figure getting smaller from the distance, “She’s accepted that the crush is much more, and that she needed to talk and let this just play out naturally… what else could be bothering her?”

“I thought you talked to her yesterday?”

“I’m not a miracle worker Yang.” Blake shifted on the floor, “Ruby was pretty closed off yesterday, and she needed a friend that was just there instead of one slamming advice after advice.”

She looked at Yang, “And I know that’s your specialty Yang.”

“Well if you ask me, Weiss was deserving of the truth getting handed to her… well a little bit.”

“Did you go overboard again?”

“I didn’t mean to, just seeing Ruby that morning before seeing her really got all my emotions amped up… not to mention there’s more to this whole situation, I just don’t know what.”

Blake sighed, seeing Ruby getting on a bus and leaving, “I just hope these two don’t mess up what they have.”

* * *

“Are you sure you will be fine on your own? You have never been great at keeping your alcohol.” Weiss asked as she helped her wobbly ex down the stairs.

“I’ll be fine, my driver is in the car ‘cause I definitely was planning to drink… what about you?” Neptune asked, some words slurring.

Weiss rolled her eyes, “I am going to be fine. I only had one drink, not to mention I’m taking the bus back.”

“Heh, you and buses do… do not mix.”

“Alright,” Weiss said, giving him a shove to the direction of his car, “You go home and not drink your sorrows away.”

“I’m not a sad man!”

Weiss chuckled at his antics… one thing she definitely was going to miss was his drunken banter.

Weiss then crossed her arms and approached a rock in the front garden, “Now why am I not surprised that you are still here?”

Blake and Yang were sitting against the rock, and seemingly was looking towards the sky.

“We were star gazing! The sky is pretty clear tonight!” Yang exclaimed.

“Surely you could have done that in the comfort of your car.” Weiss looked back to see some of the other patrons of the restaurant also leaving. She ducked down to their level, “Also I am sure that half of the people who walked past thought you both were drunk beyond belief.”

“Well we ain’t! If anyone was drunk it would be…” Yang paused for a moment and observed Weiss carefully, “… you. I thought you were gonna be drinking.”

“I had a sip or two… honestly Neptune did all the drinking for me.”

“Neptune… huh…” Yang and Blake watched his car exit the driveway with the said man passed out in the passenger’s seat. Yang reached over and flicked Weiss on the forehead.

“Ow!”

“Well that’s for stringing Neptune along. Forgot to do it yesterday.”

Weiss sighed, “Okay, I totally deserved that.” She then looked beside Yang and Blake, “Um… Where’s Ruby? I need to clear something up.”

“Blake!!!!”

“Like I said Yang! I have no control over your sister’s actions, how she interprets my advice is all up to her.”

Yang groaned as she got up from the floor, twirling Blake’s car keys in her hands, “Come on! It’s time to fix all of this!”

* * *

Ruby was curled up on the ledge of her roof again, looking over to the direction of the mall as she watched the nightlife twinkle in the distance. Her eyes hovered over Weiss’ backyard, anticipating the moment when the woman was going to return home. Oddly enough, no movement occurred from the inside of the house, meaning she had more time before she had to retreat into her room again.

Suddenly, she heard the creaking of a wooden door opening.

With a surprised gasp she spun in her position, arms ready to defend herself from the intruder. However, once she recognised the person, her arms quickly went down as she became frantic for another escape off the roof.

Weiss groaned from her viewpoint at the roof’s entrance as she closed the door, “Ruby you are not escaping again!”

Ruby pouted as she stared off in a different direction, trying to ignore the shuffling behind her as Weiss slowly slid down to sit beside her, “Goodness, you really should put some platform here if you frequent this place so often.”

After muttering over her dress for a few seconds, Weiss’ gaze settled on Ruby, “So… you saw everything that transpired tonight?”

Ruby huffed, “Not exactly, but Yang narrated everything very bluntly.”

“So… you know my answer, right?”

“Yep.”

“Yep? That’s all? I… I thought you would have a more… excitable reaction.”

“…”

“Ruby?”

“…”

“Ruby.” Weiss said with more conviction as she gently grasped Ruby’s arms and twisted her to face her.

The brunette was not even looking at her, her face scrunched up as she shut her eyes tightly.

“Ruby… Blake said you talked to her… she said you would at least try to have a conversation.”

“…”

“… Ruby, can you please open your eyes?” Weiss asked softly.

After a long moment, Ruby slowly opened her eyes. From the moment she saw Weiss affectionate face, she started tearing up.

“… Ruby? What’s wrong?”

“I’m sorry!”

“… Sorry? What for? If anything, I should be the one who is sorry.”

“I… I should’ve never confessed to you. I shouldn’t have said anything! I shouldn’t have butt in! It’s because of me that both of you broke up!”

“What?! It’s not because of you Ruby!”

“Well I know it is! The moment that I confess to you, not only did you shoot down a proposal, but you also break up with him! Why else would you have broken up with him!?”

Weiss carefully tapped on Ruby’s shoulder to get the girl to focus on her face again, “There are actually many reasons Ruby, and we both decided it was the best course of action.”

Weiss let go of Ruby’s arms and turned to face the lights in the horizon.

“Our relationship was the strongest when I had no one else at the estate to talk to. Neptune was the only other neighbour for a while, that our friendship just eventually became romantic. But the moment I moved away the distance was too much. If we truly loved each other… if I truly liked him romantically at all, I would have tried even more to keep our relationship strong. But moving away did also reveal other things… things that I actually liked were quite different to his, and that his life is something… is something I tolerated but for the rest of my life being that? It feels… even more foreign then when I was at the estate. I still want to be a part of his life… but inevitably the reason I moved away was to get away from this fake-ness that he deals with constantly… I don’t even think he realises how fake most of the people around him are.

And Neptune is a lovely man, but our views just don’t align that much anymore. Not to mention that both of us are terrible at sustaining good communication.” Weiss chuckled, “Honestly, at the rate and point our relationship was heading to… we probably be really unhappy with each other if we did not do something.”

Ruby sighed and looked to the left, staring down into her backyard instead, “You are throwing away a long-term relationship… and I saw your face when I told you, I… you don’t want anything to do with me. You shouldn’t even be here. Just… don’t make this harder.”

Weiss’ face fell as she tilted her head in thought.

“Ruby, I am so sorry for what I did to you last week. You were being honest and so open, and I was so harsh and…” Weiss cleared her throat, “That face I made, it had absolutely nothing to do with you and your confession. I was so fluttery Ruby; my stomach was churning in a good way.”

Weiss looked into Ruby’s eyes, her cheeks feeling warmer with every word she spoke, “Ruby, it has been an awful long while since I felt like that with someone, ever. Goodness, when I finally got together with Neptune, I no longer felt that, at ALL. That face you saw on me that night, I was just so shocked and many things from the past just bubbled up.”

Weiss looked up to the stars as she wetly chuckled, “If anything Ruby, I want to do anything and everything with you!”

She looked back into Ruby’s eyes, “Even though I have not known you for so long, I think you’re worth it… to experience new and old things together.”

Ruby blushed, eyes tearing up at Weiss’ confession, “But I can’t possibly be the right person to do that.”

“Well of course I don’t know if you are the right person.” Weiss started.

Ruby winced at the remark.

“But…” Weiss grasped Ruby’s hand, their eyes meeting again, “I want to know, I want to try with you and see if you are the one for me. I want us both to try this and see how we go.”

Ruby’s throat bubbled with a muffled sob, “You sure? Even… even if I’m not the right person for you?”

Weiss gave Ruby a soft smile, bringing up her left hand to cup Ruby’s cheek. The brunette reluctantly leaned into the hand, tears beginning to pool at the corners of her eyes.

“Ruby… please let go of these doubts. I want to take a chance with you… I want to discover with you… even if we only known each other for a year, I have learnt with all the time I spent with you that even I need to let go of my insecurities and see this amazing woman who was only a fence away.”

Weiss brought Ruby’s forehead to her own, “Tonight, here in the present… you’re always going to be right person for me.”

“Really?”

“Really.”

Ruby weakly giggled, wiping her oncoming tears with her left hand before reaching to gently tangle her own fingers into Weiss’ locks of hair as she cupped the back of her head.

“May I?”

Weiss smiled so brightly, nodding against her as they both leaned in together, meeting in the middle…

At perfect balance with each other.

* * *

Yang waved three sparklers from each of her hands in an exuberant manner. Her grin was out for display as she posed in front of the DSLR camera Blake was using to take photos of the blonde in question.

Blake brought down her camera to take a break, “Alright those seem good… should we call them down to get a group photo? Before the new year gets here.”

Yang glanced at her watch and chuckled, “Don’t worry about it, too late to do it now. It’s only a minute until then. We can do the group photos after the fireworks.”

Blake nodded as she quickly made adjustments on her camera to take better photos of the night sky and fireworks. She then was lightly shoved on the side as numerous countdowns starting from 60 seconds could be heard from around the neighbourhood.

“Blakey!” Yang exclaimed as she pointed to where Weiss and Ruby were sitting on the roof ledge together. She rolled her eyes as she waltzes behind Blake, “Ugh, the honeymoon phase.”

“Don’t worry, you can fully grill Weiss in the new year.”

“Yeah, yeah, still a little mad but Ruby’s been smiling so I wanna let them have that little window.”

Blake shook her head fondly and raised her camera to capture the moment before them, before and after the new year began.

Up on the roof ledge, Weiss and Ruby giggled softly amongst themselves. Their foreheads nestled against each other, their eyes gazing at only one another. Together they welcome the new year together, soft kisses eclipsing the fireworks in the background…

Starting the new year with a lovely beginning.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone!
> 
> It's done!!!! God, it's been so long since I conceptualised, posted the original version and then reposting it! It felt like a marathon that went on forever! Nonetheless, I loved revisiting and writing up the new chapters!
> 
> So regarding this ending, it was a little hard to end it in a satisfying way. One could debate that I could've just added more chapters, but all of the events that happened in this specific chapter all tied in with the memoir anecdote; 'letting go'. So, I couldn't split the chapter across multiple ones since it would be similar anecdotes which would be repetitive. Also, my difficulty wasn't not having enough chapters to end it, but the fact that there was going to be stuff left loose or unsaid (since this first part of the series is not the end), which was always going to make it feel not quite finished yet. 
> 
> So, I tried to make it a little satisfying with dropping the title and ending it the way I always wanted to end it when I first wrote this story, with a new beginning ;) (and with the whole firework imagery I started the story with)
> 
> Personally, I wanna hear how you found this ending, the feedback would be very helpful with the later endings of the other parts.
> 
> So about this whole series that I planned out...  
> I'll be honest, this story was actually going to end here when I first created the idea, but even I personally hated that I was going to end it without them being in an actual relationship. So... I got a little disheartened with finishing it... but after revisiting when times were tough, I got this new idea! And this fluffy story needed to be developed so much more, and somehow, I figured out a way without rewriting every single dang thing I typed before hand 
> 
> And... a lot of developing and editing I did to the chapters was in service to what will be coming in the future. Firstly, one belief I have is that Ruby needed to be an independent person before she got into a relationship, because her being too dependent on someone wasn't a good thing for a relationship to become endgame (hence her learning to live by herself). I wanted them to become individual people before getting together. Personally, I find it actually much easier to write a relationship in a story if their characterisation has been established enough that their relationship dynamic can come out naturally (or in this case, their dynamic is already established so we get to see it evolve :D). 
> 
> Secondly, Weiss has had hints to her backstory, but not to the extent of Ruby. This first part in this series was definitely more focused on them getting to know each other, usually from Ruby's POV. This is because well... as I've mentioned, set up for future events ;) and hopefully, when those things arrive, the way Weiss reacts in this ending would make much more sense.
> 
> And speaking of the set up in this story, this part will be noticeably longer than the other parts (no way am I going to go over 30 chapters again), and that's because most of the set up here will have a pay off or be reoccuring. One thing I do wish a lot of slice of life fics I've read had, was multiple recurring sayings, symbols and jokes... like in a real relationship, where there are moments that just make you smile and gooey :) Some fics do have that, but it's usually one thing and it's always made to be the point of the chapter. As I'm planning, there are going to be some recurring things that are more subtle and in the background, so the world story... feels very 'lived in'. If none of that really meant anything to you, at least think of it like a spot the reference :D
> 
> But, I guess that's all you are going to hear about the series for know, I'm currently busy with university but I've got better time management than I did years ago, so I've been able to work on the sequel of this. It won't be coming any time soon, give me a month or so and the sequel will be uploading around then :D
> 
> So, thank you all for reading, it's been one cool ride being able to talk to you all entertain ya :D Feel free to comment anything I'll be sure to reply and that'll be fun while waiting for the next phase...
> 
> But other than that, I'll all see you in the second part of 'The Love Story of Ruby Rose and Weiss Schnee'  
> (p.s. I'll update this with a chapter mentioning that the sequel has begun, since I know some people just keep this open in a tab or something :3)


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